The Archangel
by DeExil
Summary: Naruto didn't take just one jutsu from the scroll of sealing, he took three. Kage Bunshin and two more; what will happen when he suddenly changes into something that only the heavens have seen and humans have only heard of? Massive AU
1. Light for a cursed boy

**Summary: Naruto didn't take just one jutsu from the scroll of sealing, he took three. Kage Bunshin and two more; what will happen when he suddenly changes into something that only the heavens have seen and humans have only heard of? (Massive AU) **

**Pairing: Naruto x fem-Sasuke (Don****'****t like? Don****'****t read it!)**

**Note: Might be some bashing here and there but nothing serious. Council exists, no matter how fanonish it is…Also, to not make any confusions, when I refer to the male Sasuke I will say ****'****he****'****, ****'****him****'**** and so on but when I refer to female Sasuke it will be ****'****she****'****, ****'****her****'**** and so on…(I know the council exists in the manga, I will use that one as well but I might use the fanon council as well – I will see)**

**Attention: If you don't like the story then don't read it! Save me of your anger filled comments…and if an OC is overpowered…you will see why…so don't go and "flame strike" me**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto, only my crazy ideas**

**The Archangel ****–**** Chapter 1: Light for a cursed boy…**

A blond boy with whisker like marks sat under a tree with a massive scroll in his hands. His face continued to change between happiness and anger at what he was reading from the scroll. Why you ask? The answer was quite simple, he was looking over the Forbidden Scroll to try and learn some techniques. Why was he doing that? He had failed the genin exam for the third time and just when he thought that there was no hope for him to ever make it as a ninja one of his sensei approached him and told him of this place and the scroll, promising to pass him if he learns a jutsu from the scroll.

The blond scratched his head; he had already learned the **Kage Bunshin**, despite the fact that **Bunshin no Jutsu** was his weakest skill. Somehow, he managed to learn the **Kage Bunshin** and he could actually create a solid clone. Once he completed the task he should have just stayed and waited for his sensei to arrive, but as they say, curiosity killed the cat, for you see he wanted to learn more, his taste for learning techniques couldn't be saturated by just one, he wanted more and the scroll could give him what he desired.

So he did the next best thing to saturate his thirst for jutsu's, he continued to read the scroll skipping over a lot of jutsu's that in his opinion weren't good at all. As he was passing through the list of jutsu's something crossed his mind, what if the weakest of the jutsu's was the first one on the list and what if the strongest was at the bottom of the list? The blond grinned to himself as he started unrolling the entire scroll trying to reach the very end.

His eyes widened at the sheer size of the scroll, it was bigger than it looked when it was rolled. The scroll, if he was right, was about 9 to 10 meters long. Jutsu's from the time Konoha was founded were present on this large piece of paper; jutsu's used by the very First Hokage were also written on the scroll. He would have learned them, he was tempted, but he wanted to see the very first jutsu, the first two to be more exact.

So he continued to unroll the scroll until he reached the end and what greeted him was something he couldn't understand nor comprehend. The last two jutsu's, dating back from the moment Konoha was being built were in a different language, he tried and tried to understand it but he couldn't. It was alien to him, the description was even stranger, it had writing, yes, but it was in a language he couldn't comprehend no matter how much he tried to.

So Naruto looked at the picture description, it showed a human doing the hand seals, hand seals that he had never seen before in his life and he had never read about them in books or so on. But anyway, Naruto continued to look as the man was entangled in a bright light from what it seemed and then…it ended? The blond groaned when he saw that the rest of the image was erased, cut out. The boy growled in annoyance, deciding to look at the one before the first, he saw the same strange writing. He sighed.

Naruto looked at the picture description wondering if it will help, all it showed was a strange man holding a sword. What was strange about the man was that he had wings like he were some kind of bird or something like that. The blond raised an eyebrow and started thinking; maybe this jutsu will give the user wings so he can fly and maybe that sword as well. He grinned thinking of the possibilities with such a technique. Still, the other one was on his mind and he kept thinking, why not try and see what it does? So he did just that.

The blond sat cross legged on the ground and started exercising the strange hand seals. Naruto realized something was strange, as he kept working on the hand seals he thought that he could understand the title of the jutsu's, or at least that he could read them, but it still didn't ring a bell as to what they would really do, especially the first one. But he shrugged as he continued to work on the jutsu; there would be no harm in it after all if he tried them, right? They couldn't actually kill him.

Unknown to him, as he was practicing many people felt his attempt, various warriors only seen or heard of in legends rose to see what was happening, an odd power surge could be felt traveling through their plain. Naruto didn't know at the moment, but with his practice and his tries he was stirring up ancient forces, foes, and with them he was starting a battle that had been long forgotten.

* * *

Naruto stood panting on the ground with the scroll rolled, he had finished training and he was beat. It proved tougher than he originally thought, it wasn't a stroll in the park, but then again was life ever a stroll in the park? The blond shook his head while chuckling silently to himself; it was a little hard seeing how tired he was. Just then someone dropped from the trees in front of Naruto, he recognized the person instantly, it was none other than Iruka and he looked really pissed off.

"NA-RU-TO!" he said with a menacing voice. It looked like he was about to explode because of the anger at any moment.

"Ah you found me Iruka-sensei." said Naruto rubbing the back of his head sheepishly. "Iruka-sensei I learned a jutsu from the scroll, now you will have to pass me right?" he asked smiling with sparkles in his eyes. After all, that was what Mizuki told him and surely Mizuki wouldn't lie.

"Pass you?" he asked intrigued, his rage long forgotten "Who gave you that idea?"

"Mizuki-sensei said." responded Naruto with a grin on his face. "He told me that if I learn a jutsu from this scroll you will have to pass me." Iruka's eyes widened, understanding what was happening here, the boy was tricked into stealing the scroll.

Just then Iruka felt another presence. "Ah, so Iruka made it before me, no matter, hand over the scroll Naruto." demanded Mizuki who was sitting in a tree, on a branch to be more precise.

"No Naruto, don't give him the scroll!" yelled Iruka looking back at the blond from Mizuki.

Mizuki frowned and took a giant shuriken from his back and launched it towards Naruto who stood in fear, he closed his eyes waiting for the pain to come. He heard the shuriken slash something but the pain didn't come, he opened his eyes and saw Iruka had shielded him.

"Why?" asked Naruto tearing up.

"Because…I know how it's like…to be alone…" said Iruka cringing in pain.

"Oh isn't this touching?" mocked Mizuki "Hand me the scroll boy." demanded the man while moving his hand towards the second fuuma shuriken.

"No Naruto. Whatever you do, don't give it to him." said Iruka as he looked at the blond pleadingly.

"Do you want to know why everyone hates you?" asked Mizuki with a sick grin on his face.

"No Mizuki, don't!" yelled in despair Iruka.

"It's because of a decree that the Hokage put, not letting us tell anyone the truth about the Kyuubi incident." he said ignoring Iruka.

"Don't Mizuki!"

"D-decree?" asked Naruto scared and confused at the same time.

"Yes, a decree that you don't know because it's about you, it's to not let you know that you are actually the Kyuubi no Kitsune. Yondaime could not defeat the fox so he sealed it into you, you are Kyuubi no Kitsune, that's why everyone hates you and shuns you, even your precious Iruka." said Mizuki starting to laugh hysterical.

Naruto looked at Iruka with fear in his eyes. He was Kyuubi; he had the Kyuubi inside of him, which is why everyone hates him, the reason why everyone shuns him. He rolled away from Iruka and started running into the forest.

"Naruto!" yelled Iruka.

"Get back here demon." said Mizuki running after Naruto. Iruka got back on his feet and ran after them. A few minutes later Iruka caught up with Naruto.

"Naruto listen to me…" said Iruka "Give me the scroll before Mizuki comes." Naruto jumped on Iruka kicking him and throwing him on the ground. He landed in front of him.

"How did you know?" asked 'Iruka' poofing. Instead of Iruka there was now Mizuki.

"That's because…" Naruto poofed as well. "…I am the real Iruka." the chunnin said.

"Why do you protect him?" demanded Mizuki, unknown to them Naruto was listening behind a tree. "I thought you hated the demon."

"It's true, I hate the demon…" said Iruka and Naruto felt his heart break, he felt rejected again "But not Naruto." at this Naruto felt his heart stop as his head snapped up "I hate the demon fox Kyuubi but not Naruto who is a totally different entity. He is Uzumaki Naruto, Konoha's number one most unpredictable ninja and prankster."

"Touching." said Mizuki taking the second shuriken, he threw it at Iruka who had his back to a tree, to tired and injured to move out of the way. Just as the shuriken was about to hit Iruka a blur passed in front of the chunnin and Naruto caught the weapon with his right hand.

"Don't you ever…hurt Iruka-sensei." he said coldly as his eyes started glowing.

"And what are you going to do brat?" laughed Mizuki.

"I'm going to kick your ass!" yelled Naruto.

"Oh yeah? I will only need one shot to finish you off."

Naruto smirked and made a hand seal. **"Kage Bunshin no jutsu"** the area filled with at least a hundred Naruto's. Mizuki's and Iruka's eyes went wide at the jutsu.

"So?" asked the clones "I thought you were going to beat me in one go." they taunted "If you won't do it then I will." they jumped on him and started fighting.

But something went wrong; Mizuki had changed during the fight in a strange half-human creature. He looked like a mix between a panther and a human; he became more powerful and managed to defeat all the clones. The blond was now on the ground panting and looking at the man with fear in his eyes, he was too tired, the clones were ineffective, and he could hear Mizuki laughing at him.

"That was all you got demon?" spat the man as he looked at the blond. "I thought you were better for a demon." He taunted.

Rage started building up in Naruto; he grabbed the scroll and let it drop on the ground as he stood up. "Don't think this is over." He growled as he brought his hands up in a seal.

"Oh, you will try your luck again?" taunted Mizuki as Naruto growled.

"No, I got something better." smirked the blond as he started doing hand signs, Mizuki and Iruka looked at what the boy was doing, trying to understand. They had never seen those hand signs before.

The blond suddenly said something that both men couldn't understand and soon his right hand started glowing white. He smirked and made another set of hand signs, this time for the last jutsu in the scroll. Once more he said something in the same strange language, but this time nothing happened.

The blond looked with wide eyes, nothing was happening. Was that jutsu a joke? Was he out of chakra? He could hear Mizuki roaring with laughter at him. He growled, he decided to use the **Kage Bunshin** once more. Just as he was about to use the technique again he felt pain in his back, in his shoulder blades to be more exact. He dropped on his knees holding his head and screaming. The two chunnin watched as something seemed to boil in the blond boy's back.

The sound of clothing ripping could be heard as two large wings burst from the blond's body spraying blood on the ground and making the blond shout in pain. Iruka and Mizuki looked in awe at the large angel like wings. They were big; it seemed to be bigger than the boy by at least three inches. The blond dropped on the ground as the wings dropped on the ground on him.

Mizuki shook his head and sneered, a demon was still a demon and this was one of his trickeries. He took a kunai out and started walking towards Naruto. "No, don't do it Mizuki!" Iruka yelled in fear.

The chunnin grinned as he stood in front of the blond with his kunai up and ready to strike, he started lowering the weapon and just as it was about to hit the boy's head, a hand shot up and grabbed Mizuki's. The white haired man looked in horror as the hand belonged to the blond boy only that the hand was inside a gauntlet, a pure white gauntlet.

If things couldn't get any weirder, the blond's head snapped up to look at Mizuki, but what was strange was the fact that his eyes were white and glowing. A strange white light entangled the blond as his clothes started changing, the light made its way from down from the blond's feet to his head creating a white robe and hood. All Mizuki could see now was one of the blond's eyes as his face was now completely covered by the hood.

The blond twisted Mizuki's hands, making him gasp in pain and then with a flick of his wrist the boy threw Mizuki away into a nearby tree. Slowly the boy stood up and Iruka could clearly see a sword in the blond's right hand, the sword's hilt resembled angel wings. While the blade was thick at the start and as it kept going it became thinner. The design of nine tails could be seen on the sword.

Once again the blond was entangled in light and this time fire. Slowly, designs started appearing on the blond. On the back of the robe the design of an angel and a fox facing each other could be seen, his left gauntlet had fiery red designs of fox tails on it while the right gauntlet remained pure white. His wings shot up as strange sparkles dropped from the wings.

The blond turned his head slowly towards Mizuki who was now looking in fear at the blond. Slowly, the boy raised his left hand up, it caught fire. He pointed towards Mizuki and the unthinkable happened. The man caught fire, just like that, he caught fire. He started screaming and started dropping and rolling to extinguish the flames, but it wouldn't die down. In a matter of seconds Mizuki burned his corpse unrecognizable.

The blond then turned towards Iruka, the man couldn't see his face, and the hood was now covering his entire face, apart from his mouth of course. He had no emotions judging by the thin line that his mouth made. The blond started walking towards Iruka, the chunnin didn't know what was going to happen; was Naruto going to kill him as well? He started shaking in fear, just as Naruto reached the man he dropped on his knees and then flat on his face, his wings dropping on his body once more.

* * *

He felt warm, it was like that one time when he fell asleep on the field in midsummer and the sun bathed him with its warmness. That feeling of having the sun shine on your face, it was just like that. A small smile appeared on his face as he snuggled deeper in the soft grass. His mind was now making him believe he was in that grassy field once more, near that tree he always used to hide in from people that he angered.

His ears then registered movement; someone shifted in their location and gave a light cough, almost unheard. Then he felt something on his body, it felt soft, it felt warm. Then his nose picked up that smell which he hated with a passion, the smell of antiseptics, and the unforgettable stench from a hospital. His eyes snapped open as he found himself staring at a ceiling. He looked down and saw the covers. Then he looked around and nodded to himself, he was in a hospital.

Slowly, the blond tried to sit up. "You shouldn't move Uzumaki-san." an ANBU said in a distinctive feminine voice as she suddenly appeared in the room "Hokage-sama said that you aren't supposed to move until he returns." she told the blond.

"Why is that?" asked Naruto. He felt his back aching. Groaning he moved his hand behind only to feel feathers. He blinked in surprise as he turned his head slightly behind and saw the wings, his eyes widened and then looked downcast. "So it wasn't a dream." he muttered.

"Pardon me?" asked the woman tilting her heard slightly to the side in confusion.

"I really did kill Mizuki…I am a demon." he said looking down at his trembling hands.

The woman placed her hand on his head making him look at her. "Whatever people say, you aren't a demon, and it's a ninja's job to kill…don't feel bad." she said smiling behind her mask, though Naruto couldn't see.

"Thanks." the blond replied with a small grin. "I guess you're right." he said and then sighed once more.

"Is something the matter Uzumaki-san?" she asked taking her hand away.

"No…it's fine." he replied tiredly.

"It's not…" said the woman making Naruto look at her. "I can see that something is bothering you, don't be afraid, you can tell me…" she said kindly.

The blond looked at her skeptical and then sighed. "I don't know…what I will do now…" he said.

"Why is that?" she asked curiously.

"I failed my exam again, all the others passed…I will be stuck in the academy still…" he said in a sad voice at first and then with anger.

The woman shook her head as she looked down at the blond. "Don't worry, the Hokage has a surprise for you." she said with a giggle.

Just then the door opened, the woman quickly stood up straight. The Hokage walked in and looked around, he nodded at the ANBU and then looked at the blond and smiled happily to see him awake.

"Naruto, how are you feeling?" asked the aged Hokage.

"Like crap." replied the blond looking at the Hokage.

"Now, now…don't have to be so rude." said Sarutobi with a smile.

"Why shouldn't I?" asked Naruto with a glare taking the Hokage by surprise. "I just found out that I have the Kyuubi in me and then I get these weird wings." he growled in anger, the Hokage and the cat masked ANBU could have sworn they saw his eyes going white for a second.

"So you know of the Kyuubi." the Hokage said in a low voice.

"Of course I fucking know." the blond almost shouted in anger making the old man sigh.

"I'm sorry, I wanted to tell you one day but I was afraid of how you might take It." he said with sorrow.

Naruto turned his head away and looked out the window. "Don't worry old man…I don't blame you…" he said closing his eyes "I blame the council of Konoha and its citizens!" he shouted in anger startling those in the room.

"Why is that Uzumaki-san?" the ANBU asked curiously as Naruto turned to look at her.

"Because they are too idiotic to realize that I am not the fox and yet they still try to hurt me and deny things for me." he said in a low voice.

The Hokage flinched hearing that. "Still…" he said trying to lighten the mood. "…I have a surprise Naruto." he said as the blond looked at him.

"And what is that?" asked Naruto with an eyebrow up.

"You are a genin of Konoha after your display." he said handing him a headband "This is Iruka's; he said he wanted you to have it." Sandaime said with a smile.

The blond looked at the headband and grinned; he sat up and slowly walked towards the Hokage. As the blond reached the old man he took the headband and tied it on his right arm, he then looked up and moved his hands behind his head and grabbed his hood and pulled it over his head, then he looked up at the Hokage and grinned, all that the aged man could see was the grin.

"Why did you cover your face?" asked the Hokage.

"I don't know…" the blond replied "I felt like I wanted to…" he said not certain on himself "Jiji…what happened to me?" he asked looking up at the aged man.

The Hokage looked at the boy with sympathy. "You used two ancient jutsu's that I am afraid I do not know what they do, apparently one gave you a sword that is now strapped to your waist." he said and true to his words, when Naruto looked down he saw the sword strapped to his waist. "The second gave you angel like wings…."

"Can I revert this?" asked Naruto.

"I … don't know…I never saw someone use the jutsu's before, I have nothing on it. I stayed up all night trying to understand what it is but there was nothing." explained the Hokage. "There are no records whatsoever, I am afraid you are stuck like that." said the Hokage with an apologizing look.

Naruto sighed in annoyance. "Great, just what I need, now the villagers will demand my head because I am imposing as an angel." said the blond.

The old man chuckled despite the fact that it might be true what the blond said. "And because of that I came up with a temporary solution." as he heard that, the blond looked up in surprise trying to understand what the Hokage's solution was. "I asked our genjutsu specialist to place a genjutsu on you, it will hide your wings and cloak and make you look….well like you looked before." The Sandaime said with a smile present on his face.

Naruto lightened up as he heard that, sure he liked the wings and the thought that he could use them to fly and have the upper hand against his enemies crossed his mind. But he didn't want to risk having people hating him more than they already do. Sure they would be surprised when they see his wings and all that, but later they might start reverting back to their old train of thoughts and usually nothing good comes from that.

As he looked at his wings once more he eagerly nodded to the Hokage, he wanted to hide for the moment. It wouldn't do him any bad after all since he involuntarily hid the fact that he held the Kyuubi inside of him from his generation and the younger ones. And at the same that he was still keeping a secret hidden, so deadly that it could destroy the very balance of Konoha. He giggled silently as he remembered everyone's faces when he pulled that one prank, no one could backtrack it to him seeing as he was 'in the hospital' the whole time.

The old man raised an eyebrow as he saw the blond's body moving strangely, like he was laughing. He shook his head thinking that the blond was laughing happily thinking that he could walk the streets without fear, or that he could eat at Ichiraku's's without having people stare at his back in wonder. If only he knew the truth…he'd realize who the culprit behind the "Soap Crisis" was three years ago.

The old man shook his head as he turned around and walked outside. The blond watched as the Hokage stopped outside the door and seemed to talk to someone to his right. After a few seconds the Sandaime nodded and stepped out of the way. A woman with long black hair, ruby red eyes and wearing Jounin clothing walked in. As she walked in the Hokage also stepped back into the room and closed the door behind him. The ANBU then made several hand seals and then lowered her hands. Naruto didn't understand what the ANBU had done and he probably will never for a few years.

His attention was on the newcomer however. He felt her eyes on him; she was staring at his wings. It made him uncomfortable as he shuffled nervously and looked around the room trying to avoid her gaze. Realizing that she was making the boy nervous, the Jounin closed her eyes and then opened them and turned towards the Hokage. The old man smiled calmly as he nodded towards her. She sighed and turned back towards the boy and offered a small reassuring smile. Seeing the smile the blond felt a bit more relaxed.

"Don't worry, this won't hurt at all." She told him as she raised her hands and prepared to cast the illusion.

"Will people be able to see through it?" the blond inquired as the Jounin shook her head with a smile.

"I'm not the best around for nothing." She said with a giggle as she started doing the hand seals. A few moments later the blond felt strange, he felt like he couldn't see clearly for a second. "It's done." He heard the Jounin say.

Curious, the blond looked down at his hand and frowned when he saw the sleeve of his robe. He looked behind and whined as he saw that the wings were still present there. He turned towards the Jounin and glared. "I can still see them." He said as the woman smiled and shook her head.

"Yes, you can still see them." She told him as the blond looked puzzled. "The genjutsu will affect those around you, think of it like this. You are now inside a bubble that shows your former self, people cannot see past that bubble. But seeing as you are inside the bubble you can still see your … real self." she explained to the boy as he opened his mouth and then closed it.

"So…no one can see through it." He asked a bit sceptical as the woman frowned thinking that the blond might doubt her abilities.

"Well…ANBU level ninja's and Kage ones might see through it and several Jounin as well." She told him and then pointed to his chest. The blond looked down and for the first time he saw a strange necklace attached to him. "That necklace will maintain the genjutsu, it has its own chakra source and the jutsu will draw chakra from its reserves. You can refill it, but Hokage-sama will tell you how to do that. And if by any chance your genjutsu fades please seek me out." She said with a smile as she bowed slightly and then left the room.

As the door closed behind the Jounin the Sandaime turned towards Naruto and looked at him sternly. The blond gulped slightly. "Naruto, what happened to you is considered an S-rank secret. No one, and I mean no one, is allowed to know of your current situation until we figure out a way to reverse it." He said as the blond nodded with a grin. The old man smiled pleased. "Now, you should head over to the academy, same class, it's time for your assignment."

Naruto didn't need to be told twice as he dashed out of the room with a big smile on his face. The Hokage looked at the open door with a smile, a smile that soon disappeared. _"I'__m sorry Naruto…but…I think you sealed your fate."_ He thought sadly as he looked towards the ANBU and dismissed her. He closed his eyes as the ninja vanished in a plum of smoke and took a deep breath. Out of all the bad things that could have happened to Naruto…but then again, it might not be such a bad thing like the Nidaime had told him.

* * *

As Naruto reached the academy he slowed down a bit and started walking towards the entrance. He looked at the large building before him and a smile crept on his face. He had finally made it, he was now a ninja. Even though he had passed under certain circumstances and he didn't pass by orthodox methods, he was still a ninja. It didn't really bother him that he didn't pass like all the others, for him it was good enough that he could finally get some action and live the life that he had dreamt of. He could now make easy money, or at least in his opinion it was easy money and he could go on dangerous missions to save damsels in distress.

It wasn't long and the blond reached his old classroom. He looked at the door and memories flooded his mind as he remembered all those years when he came to class to listen to boring lectures, or the times he skipped classes to do what he wanted to do. He snickered at all those times he pulled pranks on the teachers and on Iruka. His smile dropped a bit as he remembered the chunnin; thoughts about the Mizuki incident flooded his mind. He was this close to losing one of those that loved him for whom he was, he didn't want that to happen. He sighed as he placed his hand on the doorknob.

"Get out of my way pig!" he heard the voice of the girl he had a crush on. He turned to greet her, his eyes widened when he saw Sakura and her long time rival Ino racing towards him while glaring at each other.

"Wait!" Naruto shouted as he raised his hands up defensively trying to make them stop. The call went unheard as the girls crashed in him with full force making him fly into a nearby wall.

"I win!" they both shouted and ran into the classroom as Naruto tried to regain his senses.

The blond sighed sadly as he shook his head. That girl, will she ever recognize him? Will she ever go out with him like he had always wanted? He shook his head and then bumped himself in the head. He didn't need to think like this, not now. There was no point in negative thoughts. He placed a smile on his face as he walked inside the class.

The first thing he did as he walked in was to see who passed the exams; he wanted to see who his potential team mates would be. He wasn't that dumb, he knew, actually he remembered what Iruka told them; ninja's work in teams. So he knew that he would get a team no matter what he tried to do. As he looked around the class he saw that all the heirs of prestigious clans had passed…no wonder.

"What are you doing here loser?" he heard someone ask, judging from the tone and the voice itself it could only be that mutt, Inuzuka Kiba. The blond groaned as he didn't want to deal with this.

"I passed the exam…" the boy said in a bored voice as he looked towards the Inuzuka. Said boy looked at Naruto oddly before looking for his headband. Naturally he looked up at his forehead.

"Hah!" he shouted like he was victories or something like that. "Then where is your headband?" he demanded pointing towards the blond's forehead making his eyebrows twitch.

"Not everyone wears their headband on their forehead!" the blond said in an annoyed tone as he pointed towards his headband, tied to his right arm.

The dog boy looked at the blond's arm and saw the headband; he laughed nervously and then crossed his arms on his chest and huffed. "How was I supposed to know?" he asked himself quietly, hoping that Naruto wouldn't hear him. The blond smiled as he shook his head.

"I'm sitting next to Sasuke-kun!" they both heard a shriek and simultaneously turned towards the sounds origin. They saw the two major Sasuke fan girls fighting over who will stay next to the boy in question. Said boy was looking away trying to ignore them.

The blond boy looked down in sadness, he once more shook his head as he realized that there was no point in being sad or sorry for something he can try and stop. Now that he was a ninja he still had a chance of impressing Sakura and having her go out with him and then maybe latter…who knows what might happen. The young boy sighed happily as Kiba turned towards him and saw the look in his eyes. He smacked his head in annoyance, Naruto was hopeless…completely hopeless.

Just as he was about to say something Naruto started walking away. As the boy passed him his scent moved in the dog boy's nose, his companion raised his head as he barked towards his master. Kiba blinked trying to understand what he just felt…or more like what he just didn't feel. Uzumaki Naruto suddenly had no scent. Before today he used to smell like ramen and fox but now he didn't smell like anything. It was strange.

"I know Akamaru." The boy whispered as the dog kept barking towards him trying to get his attention. As the words left his mouth the dog stopped barking and turned towards the blond boy who was trying to get Sakura to talk to him.

"Leave me alone Naruto! You're annoying!" the pink haired girl screeched as the blond flinched. Kiba shook his head at the boy's dumbness, why did he keep trying? He could easily try and go for someone else; hell a civilian would be good as well. As long as she wasn't flat chested like Haruno. He silently made gagging noises as the dog barked towards him. The boy chuckled to himself as he walked back to his seat.

Naruto looked down at the ground dejected as the girl he loved rejected him like that…again. He grits his teeth as he raised his head a little and looked towards the origin of his hatred, Uchiha Sasuke. The punk that hogged all the attention just because he was the last Uchiha and had good marks. If it wasn't for his status as jailor of Kyuubi, Naruto knew for sure that he could have been number one in class and he could have humiliated Sasuke. He walked towards the boy and grabbed him by the collar making the Uchiha look at him in surprise.

Sasuke raised an eyebrow as Naruto did something he had never done before. He openly grabbed him; he could see the anger in his eyes. Everyone was silent after the small display. Naruto was still holding the prodigy by his collar, said prodigy didn't do anything; he just looked back at the blond.

"Leave Sasuke-kun alone you brat!" the two fan-girls shouted simultaneously as they bonked him in the head. Naruto's grip on the boy's collar dropped as he raised his hands to rub his head. He looked back towards the two girls with sad eyes, more like towards Sakura but it didn't seem like she realized it. He then turned towards the Uchiha and glared one more time as he closed in.

"I hate you." He whispered in a low voice as the Uchiha's eyes narrowed a bit.

"I have the same thoughts about you." Sasuke said back in a whisper as he glared towards the blond.

"NARUTO!" The pink haired girl shouted enraged as she hit him on the head once more making the blond stumble and fall on Sasuke. The room was silent as the blond was now on top of the Uchiha, his left hand on his chest and his lips connected with Sasuke's, both of them were wide eyed and pale.

Sasuke for his part was frightened and angry at the same time. Frightened cause the blond had his hand on her chest and he could discover her secret. Angry because the brat had the guts to steal her first kiss something she had been saving for the one she would marry when she would reveal herself.

"Gah!" the blond shouted as he jumped away like he had been burned. He brought his hands on to his mouth and started wiping it in disgust. Seeing this made the Uchiha madder, but she had to keep her cool, she couldn't let people realize that she wasn't a he. But still…that brat had the guts to say, even though he wasn't using words, that he didn't enjoy that kiss! That she wasn't good enough! She closed her eyes and took a deep breath. _"The fan-girls will get him, the fan-girls will get him…"_ she chanted over and over in her head as she opened her eyes and looked at the blond deadly.

"Hope you burn dobe." She said in her male voice as she turned around and ignored everyone once more, though inside she was feeling strange. Her first interaction like this with the other gender, even though she was disguised in a genjutsu as a male, it was still…something. She didn't imagine it like this, definitely not like this. She could feel her face burning up for the first time in years. For the first time in years, ever since her clan's massacre she was embarrassed and she was blushing! She had to hide it, definitely had to hide it! Thinking fast, she let her head drop on the table and covered her head with her arms.

"Look what you did Naruto!" shouted the girls "Not only did you steal Sasuke-kun's first kiss, but you made him cry!" they shouted as the blond gulped knowing that pain was coming his way…and fast.

"Good morning class." Everyone heard someone call as they turned towards the door. They saw Iruka walking in with a smile on his face. The blond sighed in relief; they wouldn't beat him in front of Iruka, definitely not in front of him. He looked up and saw the girls looking at him. They all raised their fingers at their throats and made a slicing motion with their fingers. He gulped…he was fucked, definitely fucked…

"Please everyone take a seat, it's time for team arrangements." The chunnin said as Naruto walked to his sit and slowly sat down. He looked towards his left and saw Sasuke glaring at him from the corner of his eyes; he thought he saw him blushing. He shook his head; there was no way he would show something like that. He looked towards his right and saw Sakura looking at him dangerously as she was slowly punching her left palm with her fist.

Naruto gulped as he turned towards the chunnin and sat quietly in his seat…stiff as a board. "Alright, the teams are as follow…" the man started as he began listing off who is in which team. Naruto listened to the first couple teams, he barely knew the people that were placed in those teams. He silently sighed as he looked to his left with the corner of his eyes, he let out a relieved sigh as Sasuke wasn't looking towards him anymore, and he looked towards his right and then looked back in front. Sakura was still murderously glaring at him.

"Team 7 will be Uzumaki Naruto…" the chunnin said as the blond started listening fully. "… Haruno Sakura…" the blond raised his hands in the air in victory and immediately let them drop as pain moved through his body from his wings. His eyes widened, he could feel pain in his wings. He looked behind and saw he hit the table behind him with his wings and it hurt him. "…and Sasuke Uchiha." The chunnin said as the blond's eyes widened in horror. He was on the same team with him! With that bastard that was hogging all the attention.

His head dropped on the table as he heard Sakura cheer and shout something he didn't understand. Now he knew that he didn't have any chances with her. "Ach" the blond shouted as he felt his wings itching. He moved his hand behind him and scratched his back, around his shoulder blades. It was itchy and he didn't like it. He sighed relieved as the itching vanished. He opened his eyes and saw everyone staring at him. He sighed as his head dropped on the table.

"This just keeps better and better." The blond said to himself as they tried to block out everyone around him and try to focus on thinking.

* * *

Naruto was angry, he was very angry. Just two hours ago Iruka had finished saying who was in which team, five minutes later Jounin started coming and picking up their teams. Thirty minutes ago Iruka went home, and Team 7 was still waiting for their damn Jounin sensei to arrive. The blond gripped the edge of the table in anger as his eyes flashed red for a second. He didn't like tardiness, when that sensei shows up he will give him a piece of his mind!

He closed his eyes and took a deep breath to calm down, he had to calm down. He then remembered his incident with Sasuke, he felt like puking. But still, Sasuke's chest…it didn't feel right. The blond raised his hand up and started closing it and opening it. When he touched Sasuke something felt different. He placed his hand on his chest and then thought back at what he felt when he touched the Uchiha…it was definitely different. It was too soft and he was sure that Sasuke was not like that.

A few rows back the boy in question looked pale, the blond was making strange motions with the hand he had touched his chest. He closed his eyes and grits his teeth in anger, the bastard had felt her! He groped her! He will die, definitely had to die! Her eyes snapped open as she opened her mouth to shout at the blond. Just as she was about to do that the door opened and everyone turned towards it. A silver haired man stepped into the room and looked at its occupants with a bored look.

"Well…your all boring…" he said as everyone raised an eyebrow in confusion. "Meet me on the roof…" he said before vanishing in a plum of smoke. It was then that they realized that man was their Jounin sensei; it was then that they realized he had called them a bunch of boring people. Naruto's eyebrows twitched in anger as he sat up and started storming towards the roof with the intent to give his sensei a piece of his mind. His team mates soon followed but at a slower pace, Naruto was acting strange, stranger than ever before.

As Sasuke and Sakura reached the roof they were greeted by a strange sight. Their blond team mate was sitting on the floor, cross legged with his hands crossed over his chest and looking pissed while their sensei was leaning over the rail and reading a strange orange book. The man lowered his book a little and told them to take a seat next to their blond friend. They did as they were told.

Everyone stood in silence for several minutes, the only sound that could be heard were the birds and the Jounin flipping through the books pages. He then looked up at his student and said. "Introduce yourselves."

They looked between each other confused as to what they were supposed to say exactly. Sakura decided to speak their thoughts. "Umm…sensei, would you start first?" she asked shyly as the other two nodded in agreement. The Jounin sighed as he closed his book and pocketed it. He crossed his hands over his chest and looked at the team.

"My name is Hatake Kakashi, I like many things, I dislike little things, my hobbies are not for you and my dream…you cannot understand it." He introduced himself with a smile behind his mask as the team face faulted realizing that the only thing they learned was the man's name. "You go next Blondie." The man said with a smile while pointing towards the blond boy who twitched in annoyance.

"Fine…" he grumbled as he looked at the silver haired man. "I'm Uzumaki Naruto, I like ramen, sleeping and training, I dislike arrogant people and the ten minutes it takes to cook the ramen, my hobbies are training, pranking…" he grinned as his sensei stiffened for a second "…and reading." Everyone looked at him with wide eyes, Naruto? Uzumaki Naruto read books? "What?" the blond asked curiously as he felt everyone stare at him. "Meh…my dream is to become Hokage and be accepted by everyone!" he proclaimed happily as everyone sighed.

"Broody." The man said pointing towards Sasuke whose eyebrows twitched in annoyance.

"Uchiha Sasuke, I don't have many likes, I dislike a lot, and I have no hobbies and my dream…no…my ambition is to kill a certain man and revive my clan." He said in a dark voice as Sakura squealed and Naruto rolled his eyes. "Oh yes…" he then stated. "And to make someone pay…dearly…" he told them as his eyes moved towards the blond for a second. Naruto saw that and gulped silently as he chuckled nervously.

"Right…" Kakashi said as he blinked. He turned towards the last member of the team and pointed towards her. "You pinkie."

The girl fumed at the nickname and crossed her arms. She slightly raised her head up and started talking. "I'm Haruno Sakura, I like…" she looked towards Sasuke and lowered her head a bit. "…my hobbies are…" she looked towards the Uchiha once more as her head lowered again. "…my dream is…" she giggled as she looked towards the same person for the third time.

"Ugh…your dislikes?" the Jounin asked, he just had to have a fan-girl, out of the types of girls he could have had in his team he had to have a damned fan-girl.

"Ino-pig and Naruto-baka!" she shouted to the heavens as the blond's head dropped in disappointment. Sasuke smirked towards the blond, but tried to hide it and Kakashi just shook his head as he stood up straight.

"Alright, listen here everyone." They did as they were told; they inched closer towards the Jounin and listened to what he had to say. "Tomorrow at six in the morning we will do survival training, I expect you to be on time and not to eat…understood?" he asked as everyone nodded.

"Hey wait a minute." The blond said as everyone turned towards him. "Why shouldn't we eat?" he asked as his team mates thought over it and then nodded in agreement.

"Unless you enjoy puking your guts I suggest you don't eat." The jounin replied with an eye smile as he vanished in a plum of smoke and left everyone rooted in their spot deathly pale.

"Hn." The Uchiha said after a few moments of silence, he turned around and started walking away. The pink haired girl shook herself out of her stupor and turned towards the object of her affection.

"Sasuke-kun!" she chirped as the boy stopped. "You want to go out?" she asked as the boy slightly turned his head towards her and glared.

"No, you're annoying." He said as he turned around and started walking away, once more leaving a dejected Sakura behind. The blond watched the interaction between them and got angry, why was that Sasuke being suck a jerk?

"Hey Sakura-chan!" he called out as he walked next to her. "Why don't you go out with me?" he asked happily as the girl turned towards him and glared hard.

"I won't go out with you!" she screeched as the boy took a step back in fright. "I hate you Naruto, your annoying and always getting in my way and my love for Sasuke!" she said as she huffed and turned around starting to walk away, probably to find Sasuke and ask him out again or stalk him.

The blond boy looked down at the ground dejected. He sighed heavily, just like all the other days when he asked her out. She would say no and storm off, he would be sad for a few hours and then he would feel better again and chase after her in the morning. He chuckled to himself, that's what he always does. Then his head rose as he blinked, that was indeed what he always did, but why? He asked himself and found the answer immediately, because he feels attached to her, that's why. He nodded to himself triumphantly as he started walking away towards his home.

As he was walking down the streets he could feel someone watching him. He looked around with the corner of his eyes but no matter how hard he tried he couldn't spot anyone. The feeling of being watched made him nervous, he suddenly felt like a trapped rat despite the fact that he was walking through the crowded streets of Konoha, which he rarely did due to the fact that people tend to don't like him around them.

He picked up the pace wanting to get away from whoever was watching him, sure the villagers would look at him or glare at his back, but that was different. What he felt now was completely different. It was like the one watching him was the one that would end him. He definitely didn't want that to happen. Suddenly he felt like the one watching him was behind him, he turned around but there was no one following him, people around him were moving as far as they could.

He started shaking, for the first time in years he was afraid again, he felt insecure once more. He turned around slowly and without a warning he started dashing down the streets taking through the alleys and the roof tops to get away from whoever was following him. It didn't take long and he could feel the presence disappearing, he could feel safe once more. He sighed in relief as he jumped down from a roof top and started walking back home. This day was getting really strange.

* * *

It was dark, the streets were empty. Just ninja could be seen passing through the streets from time to time. Everyone was sleeping by now, all civilians and young genin were sound asleep. In his apartment, the young blond could be seen sleeping peacefully in his bed with his face on the pillow and his back to the ceiling. He couldn't sleep on his back due to his wings. He hated them now, he wanted to get rid of them but until the old man found a way to get rid of them, he had to endure it.

A snore was heard in the room as the blond started mumbling in his sleep. Everything seemed peaceful, but it only seemed so. Deep inside the boy's mindscape two red eyes opened and an evil grin appeared in the darkness. Flames erupted around the figure as it started plotting. With the boy's insolence and foolishness they might have a chance once more, their armies will stomp over them like they did millennia ago and they will win once more and rule over these pathetic creatures. No one was going to stop them, absolutely no one.

The blond grumbled in his sleep and then shivered. His eyes snapped open as he sat up on his bed and looked around. His eyes rested on the window which was open. He raised an eyebrow. Did he open the window? He shook his head not remembering, he concentrated but he could feel no one in the room. Shrugging the blond walked away from the bed and towards the window. As he reached the window he was about to close it when he stood frozen in shock at what he was seeing.

Konoha…it was burning. The entire village was burning, ninja and civilian alike were all over the place, dead. Some impaled with spikes, other ripped to shred by kami knows what. He could see some civilians running through the village and screaming in horror, some protecting their children as they ran. The blond heard a roar and looked up. He stopped breathing at what he was seeing. In the middle of Konoha was a large gate, two large skeletons holding large swords and chains seemed to be the pillar for the gate. Its gates from what it seemed were lying on the ground and a strange vortex could be seen between the "pillars"

The blond started shaking and breathing irregularly as he saw many creatures walking out of the portal, strange animal like creatures, skeletons, zombies, ghosts…demons. Big, small…they were all walking out of the portal and killing everyone and everything around them in one swipe. His eyes widened when he saw a figure impaled on top of the portal. He tried to see who the figure was, tried to make sense of it.

The blond screamed as he suddenly jumped from his bed. He looked around; he was in his room once more. His eyes widened as he jumped from his bed and ran to his window which was closed. He looked outside, there was nothing. Yes he could see Konoha, but it wasn't burning, he couldn't see that demonic gate or whatever it was. He couldn't see the dead or the demons walking through the streets. He sighed as he realized he just had a nightmare. A really bad one.

Walking back to his bed the blond dropped like a sack of potatoes and took another deep breath. He closed his eyes and tried to calm himself, he needed to be ready for tomorrow. He started thinking of positive things, of his dream, his ambition, of the future. He smiled as he succumbed to the darkness of his sleep. Everything was going to be alright; nightmares are just like that…nightmares...nothing more.

* * *

Sarutobi was working just like any other day, though he wasn't feeling very good. His heart was racing and he didn't know why, it was like his inner conscious knew that something would happen sooner or later. He kept working on his papers until he accidentally spilled the ink on a document. His hand stopped above the document. Was this a bad omen? Will something bad happen? He shook his head trying to dismiss the bad thoughts.

"Sandaime Hokage, Hiruzen Sarutobi." A voice said, it sounded like it came from everywhere, it held power, great power. Sarutobi felt his hands shaking, he looked up shakily and his eyes widened in fright. The four ANBU stationed in the room collapsed on their knees, their genjutsu fading. They were shivering from the power emanating in the room.

"_No__! __…the stories…the legends…their true!"_ the old man shouted frantically in his mind as he gazed at the figure before him.

* * *

**Closing comments: I would like to thank ****Silhouette of a Life**** for beta-ing my story and pointing out my mistakes. I would also like my fellow readers to pay a visit to his own page a read his story "The Rogue Hokage" if you haven't. **

**Before you go on and ask me about the other stories, I will finish them in due time. In the meantime this will be my "main" story if I can call it like that. Just like "Not Home Anymore" was, my attention will mostly go towards this one and since college is over in a month I can start writing again. I will have several stories (that are not complete) be either delete or re-written and re-uploaded. If a story will be deleted I will tell you know that I am sorry, but if its deleted it means I've gotten to a point of no return (either I can't re-write it or I don't know how to continue/lost my interest)**

**Lastly, I know some will ask me about the sequel for "Not Home Anymore"….don't, I'm already working on it, but until I reach a certain point with this one I won't upload the other. Thank you.**


	2. Blessing and Curse

**Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto**

**Archangel – Chapter 2: Blessing and Curse…**

The sound of an alarm clock ringing could be heard in the blond boy's room. Naruto groaned as he slammed his fist on the clock shattering yet another one. He raised his head from his pillow, his eyes hurt. He got out of bed and walked into the bathroom, it took a lot of effort from him to do that. As he got in the bathroom he looked up at the mirror, his eyes had black rims around them. He could barely get any sleep last night; those nightmares still appeared in his mind no matter how hard he tried to get rid of them.

He splashed some water on his face as he raised his head and looked in the mirror. He shouted in fright as a pair of red eyes looked back at him. He shook his head and looked at the mirror again. He could see his reflection. A sigh escaped his lips; he just couldn't understand what was happening to him all of a sudden. Before today he didn't have any problems like this, heck yesterday when he had those wings nothing bad happened and he didn't hallucinate or anything like that.

The blond lowered his head and grabbed the sink as he looked down at the water. He stood in silence for a few minutes, not even thinking about anything, he just watched the water in the sink. Naruto closed his eyes and sighed heavily as he stood up straight and looked in the mirror, nothing changed, it was his own reflection. Smiling, the blond closed the water and walked out of the bathroom towards his kitchen.

As he got there the first thing he did was walk to his refrigerator. He grabbed the handle and opened it, looking through the food he tried to think what he could use. Grabbing some milk he looked at the expiration date, he frowned seeing it expired a month ago. His face turned into a disgusted look as he threw the carbon box in the trash can without a second thought. He then looked back in the refrigerator but he couldn't find anything edible. He frowned as he shut the door to the refrigerator and looked through his cupboards.

A few minutes later the blond decided on making himself some instant ramen. Ten minutes later his food was done, he took the cup and sat down at the table when he remembered Kakashi said not to eat. He shrugged deciding to eat anyway as he already prepared his food. Looking down in his cup his eyes widened in horror as he felt like puking. He screamed and threw the cup out the window and grabbed his head, his eyes were wide. What the hell was happening to him? What in blazes was going on?

Naruto shook his head several times trying to dismiss his thoughts. He stood up and threw his chopsticks in the trashcan. Sighing he walked back into his room to get ready for the team meeting, his first meeting. He smiled at that, he would get to be in the same team with Sakura and he will work hard to prove that he wasn't a loser and that he was worth the time. He would make her fall in love with him and all will be good. As he finished getting dressed, the blond walked out of his apartment and closed the door behind him. He then jumped down on the street from his floor and started running towards the training grounds.

Up on the rooftops two ANBU looked at the retreating form of the boy, they had witnessed his reactions. One of them jumped down from the roof and walked under the boy's kitchen window, he looked at the cup of ramen that was lying on the ground. The contents were spilled on the ground but nothing seemed out of place with it. The ninja turned towards his partner who shrugged not knowing what to say.

"Let's report to the Hokage." His partner suggested as the man looked down at the cup in his hand and nodded before letting it drop on the ground once more. Something was wrong with the young boy and the Hokage had to know about this.

* * *

As Naruto reached the training grounds he saw that he was the last one to arrive. Sakura and Sasuke were already there. The Uchiha was sitting under a tree and brooding while the girl still seemed to be asleep as she wasn't trying to get the boy's attention and was falling asleep from what it seemed. Naruto smiled as he saw the girl looking at him, he raised his hand and waved towards his teammates as a smile appeared on his face.

"Morning guys!" he shouted happily as Sasuke turned towards Naruto and raised an eyebrow seeing the bangs under the blond's eyes. He wondered if the boy slept last night or if he was so excited about today that he couldn't get any sleep. He shook his head and looked away; the idiot was not worth the time and definitely not worth worrying about. He could handle himself up until now; he could handle his fatigue for now.

"Naruto?" asked Sakura also noticing the bangs under his eyes. She also noticed the fact that the blond was shaking a little and that he wasn't running normally, he seemed very tired for some strange reason.

"Hey Sakura-chan." Naruto greeted with a big smile as he closed his eyes, the girl blinked before frowning at him.

"Baka, did you sleep last night?" she asked as she crossed her hands on her chest. The blond looked down as he laughed nervously.

"I … I was too excited about today and barely slept." He replied to them as they blinked towards him. Sasuke shook his head and muttered 'dobe' while Sakura frowned before glaring hard at the blond and making him flinch slightly.

"Baka! If we fail because of you I will make sure you suffer!" she scolded angrily as the blond raised his hand up in defense.

"We won't." he swore as the girl nodded and said that it better be that way. The blond sighed as he dropped on the ground and looked at his teammates, seeing as Sakura was fully awake she was now starting to try and get Sasuke's attention. Naruto blinked as he felt his eyes dropping, he started wobbling around even though he was sitting on the ground.

"_Damn…I'm so tired."_ The blond thought as he felt his eyes dropping _"Kakashi-sensei isn't here, I think I can get a shut eye…just…a minute."_ He thought as he fell on the ground on his back. A few light snores indicated he had fallen asleep. His teammates looked at him and blinked, the pink haired girl grinded her teeth in anger, if their sensei suddenly shows up and fails them because Naruto is asleep then she will kill him.

She stood up and walked towards the blond with the intent to wake him up, seeing this Sasuke decided to intervene. "Sakura." He said as the girl stopped and looked at the raven haired boy. "Leave him…he's no use tired." He said as the girl thought about it and nodded dumbly. Her mind then clicked as she realized that the raven haired boy had just talked to her. She squealed in her mind as she hopped back to her spot near the Uchiha who was twitching madly, he just had to open his damn mouth.

As Sasuke was focusing on ignoring the pinkette and said pinkette was focusing on drawing his attention neither of them saw the blond twitching on the ground and mumbling incoherent words. The blond turned in his sleep and started to thrash around, movements that went unnoticed by his teammates as each one of them was focused on something else.

A few hours later, two hours to be more exact the blond woke up sweating heavily and panting. He raised his hand to his face as he wiped the sweat. He then placed his hand on his chest and closed his eyes trying to calm himself down. He had the nightmares again; he dreamt the same thing once more. Konoha burning, the large gates, the demons, the people running around screaming in fright…the only thing he couldn't see clearly was the man impaled on the top of the gate. He still couldn't see his face clearly or what he was wearing and it made him curious as to whom he was.

Standing up, the blond looked around trying to see where his teammates are and hoping that he didn't miss the training. He didn't want to miss out on a chance to prove himself to the girl he loves. His eyes then rested on his teammates that were sitting under a tree sleeping lightly. He shook his head and sighed in relief, their sensei had yet to come. That was a good thing. Seeing as his teammates were sleeping they didn't see him thrashing in his sleep. He didn't want to look weak or anything like that. It was the last thing he needed.

A puff of smoke alerted the blond of their sensei's arrival, it also woke up his teammates. Sakura rubbed her eyes and then looked around. "Yo" their sensei said as her eyes rested on him. The girl fumed as she pointed towards the jounin and shouted angrily. "You're late!"

"Mah, mah…A black cat crossed my path so I had to walk around the village to get here." He said with an eye smile as Sasuke looked at him skeptical, wondering what kind of sensei he was thinking that they would buy such a lame excuse for his tardiness.

"Liar!" both Naruto and Sakura shouted at the same time as the jounin just kept smiling at them. He then moved his hand in his pocket and took out a watch. He placed it on a tree stump next to him and looked towards his genin with an eye smile as they waited for him to tell them what they were going to do.

"This is what we will do, I have here two bells." He said as he raised his left hand up showing them the bells. "Your task is to get one, the one that doesn't…will be tied to that stump." he pointed towards the stump in question. "You have until noon."

"Sensei?" asked Sakura as the jounin turned towards her. "Why do we have to take them?" she asked wondering what kind of training this was.

"This is your final test; if you fail it…you will be sent back to the academy." He told them with an eye smile as the three genin paled hearing what he just said. They thought that the test they took in the academy was the last one, which they assumed meant they didn't have to take any other tests.

Before anyone could complain, Kakashi hit the watch and looked at them. "Time's ticking." He said in a sing-song voice as Sasuke's eyes narrowed and jumped away in a place to hide shortly followed by Sakura. The jounin looked with pride as his students knew what they were doing, well…almost all. Turning towards the blond boy he saw him looking at him sternly with his hands crossed over his chest confidently.

"You're a strange one." The jounin said with a deadpanned look as the blond's eyebrows twitched.

"The only thing strange is your hair!" he shouted towards the jounin who merely eye smiled at him making the blond angrier. Without a second thought the genin dashed forward towards his sensei with the intent on getting one of the bells, or both of them. He could give one to Sakura and show his affection for the girl. He mentally grinned at that.

Kakashi shook his head at the direct approach the blond was using; it was never going to work against him. The kid was still too young to be able to take him on in hand to hand combat…or by himself for that matter. He moved his hand inside his pouch and the blond stopped waiting for the jounin to take out his weapon or whatever he was aiming for. To his and his teammate's surprise, the jounin took out the same orange book they saw him reading yesterday.

The boy's eyebrows twitched at the smiling sensei, it seemed like the man was mocking him. Naruto took a deep breath and locked eyes with his sensei, he charged forward once more. The man would be easier to take down now that his hands are occupied with that book. Just as the blond reached the jounin he began throwing barrages of fists and kicks towards the man. Said man was dodging all of them with ease while reading his book, acting as if he wasn't even being attacked, this made the blond angrier.

"Lesson number 1: Taijutsu." The jounin declared as he grabbed the boy's hands and jumped behind him in a crouching position. "Never leave your back unguarded." He said with a grin as he placed his fingers in the tiger seal and poked the blond in the ass. Naruto's mouth dropped in shock as he was sent flying away, a few moments later he fell in the nearby lake.

Kakashi chuckled to himself as he saw the blond fall in the lake. He shook his head and waited for the blond to come out and try again or start raging and call him a pervert or whatever. To his shock however, as the blond emerged from the lake, he could see him holding a strange sword. It was fascinating, the weapon, it seemed like it was drawing him towards it. He shook his head as he realized the blond was close to him and ready to strike with his weapon.

With a quick substitution, the jounin disappeared and instead of him a log appeared. The blond cut the log in two with his sword and grit his teeth in anger. First he was humiliated with that technique and now with this. Sure he had a humiliating jutsu, the **Sexy no jutsu** but that was something different, he didn't go around poking his fingers in others men's asses. He looked around trying to spot his sensei until he felt his presence behind him.

With a swift turn the blond swiped the air behind him, his sensei had ducked under the attack. From the look in his eyes it seemed like he was really impressed with the blond's reflexes. "Still to slow." The man stated as he moved behind the blond once more and grabbed his arms and pulled him towards him. It was at that moment that he felt something blocking him; he could even see that he couldn't move the blond's body closer to use his attack; it was like an invisible barrier was blocking him.

"Gah!" the blond screamed in pain making Kakashi wonder what the hell was going on. He saw the murderous look in the blond's eyes and immediately let him go as the blond raised his sword and cut his headband making it fall on the ground. With his Sharingan revealed, the man could only stare at what he was seeing. The boy in front of him, he was covered in a genjutsu and underneath that genjutsu…it was like he was looking at an angel.

There was no blond boy, yes, the person in front of him was as tall as Naruto but he was wearing a white robe, a white hood over his head that covered his entire face, he couldn't see his eyes or his mouth. He had gauntlets on his hands and on his back…two angel like wings, a few inches bigger then he was. The jounin was shaken out of his stupor when he saw the angel charge towards him with his sword, a sloppy stance he noted, but dangerous it seemed.

Kakashi now realized that he wasn't dealing with an ordinary kid anymore; this was something he had never dealt with before. Placing his book back in his pouch he took out his kunai and looked at the attacker seriously. He would draw blood if needed. A few moments later and their weapons connected with each other, Kakashi noticed that he was faster than the angel and swifter. Using this to his advantage, the man grabbed the boy's arm and threw him over his shoulder into a tree.

As Naruto hit the tree the jounin vanished from sight and appeared above the angel with his kunai ready to strike. However, he couldn't bring himself to strike, if he did kill the person before him then that would mean he would kill an actual angel. But…that would also mean that he would kill Naruto. He then noticed the boy moving towards his sword as silently as he could. Without wasting any time, the man grabbed the boy and with a few movements he managed to tie him upside down to a tree. He sighed as he walked towards his headband and picked it up. He closed his Sharingan eye and replaced the headband cloth; he then tied the piece of metal back around his forehead and lowered it over his special eye.

Finally, the jounin turned towards the angel and was surprised to see Naruto there hanging upside down. He shook his head remembering that he first saw a genjutsu, but that would mean that underneath this Naruto was an angel. Or that the Naruto he was seeing now was actually the illusion and underneath was the real deal. He definitely had to talk to the Hokage about this; he just had to know more about his student. Yes he knew that he harbored the Kyuubi and he expected for him to look like a human-fox later in his life but…an angel? That was way too much and he definitely had not expected that.

He couldn't continue his train of thoughts as he felt something behind him. With another quick substitution he replaced himself with a log as three shuriken hit the log. From his hiding spot, Sasuke jumped away and started dashing through the forest cursing himself for thinking that he could take down the jounin that easily. His mind suddenly drifted towards the blond, he wondered where he got that sword from and why Kakashi suddenly went so serious when he fought Naruto. Another thing that bothered him was why the jounin had a Sharingan eye.

As he kept running he suddenly heard Sakura scream, surely the jounin had gotten her and maybe with something easy. As he kept running he came to the end of the forest and appeared in a clearing. He stopped as he felt like he was being watched. Taking out a shuriken he threw it towards the nearby tree, a few leafs fell to the ground as Kakashi landed behind him with an eye smile.

"Mah…you felt me Satsuki-chan." He said with a chuckle as Sasuke narrowed his eyes and looked at the silver haired jounin.

"Don't call me that." She growled out in a feminine voice as the man chuckled slightly and got in a fighting stance.

"Very well…Sasuke-chan." He mused as the boy fumed and charged forward. Kakashi as well as a handful of the ANBU and the Hokage knew the real gender of the prodigy Uchiha Sasuke. It was saddening that her father treated her like that. He didn't like the idea that a girl had been born in their family and since she was little she had a genjutsu placed on her to keep her real gender hidden.

But, she found out by herself her true gender when she started finding herself attracted to boys or when she started having those strange feelings like most girls her age. It was then that her mother told her the truth, the bad part was that her father had heard as well and he sternly declared that if she would ever show her true gender and disgrace him then she would be terminated.

Satsuki had been devastated when her family had been massacred by her older brother, who also knew her secret but treated her like an older brother treats his younger sister. She was at the same time happy that her father died, though she would not say this to anyone. She was happy because now, after she had gained the power she needed, she could reveal her true self and live happily. Like she had always wanted when she was little, Kakashi chuckled as they were fighting remembering that she used to have a crush on Naruto when they were little. It was mostly due to the fact that Naruto was so carefree and that he could do anything he wanted without any parents berating him. She longed for that kind of life when her father used to be alive, now she longed for the family she lost…or her mother and somewhere deep down for her brother as well, even though she would never openly say so.

A few minutes passed, Sasuke had been defeated and he now lay buried under the ground. Their sensei was crouching a few feet away from him and smiling happily. He grit his teeth in anger as he tried to free himself. But he couldn't, he was trapped and only someone from outside could help him. The jounin disappeared in a plum of smoke leaving him alone in the ground. He sighed in annoyance, why the hell did this have to happen to him? He was this close to grabbing that damn bell. He felt like screaming to the heavens in anger.

* * *

As the alarm could be heard throughout the training field, Team 7 knew that they had failed their task and they were going to be sent back to the academy. Slowly they walked towards the training posts where Kakashi was waiting for them; he seemed rather unpleased with the outcome of the entire ordeal.

Without a warning, the jounin grabbed Naruto by the collar and tied him to a post. The blond was stunned, he got tied to the post, he did more then the others did! His eyes flashed red for a second as the designs on his left gauntlet became more pronounced and the foxes eyes shined for a second. It also seemed like the fox grinned for a second. Before the blond could ask why he was tied to the post, the jounin decided to speak.

"Well…you failed." He said as they all looked down in shame, indeed they had failed to get those damn bells. So now they were first going to get berated and then sent back to the academy. It angered both Sasuke and Naruto, they had worked so hard and now they were going to be sent back just because of some damn bells.

"I have decided not to send you back to the academy." The jounin said as everyone looked up in surprise, a smile appeared on the blond's face and on the pink haired girl. A small grin appeared on Sasuke's face as well as he realized that the jounin would not dare send them back to the academy, he was relieved though that he didn't have to spend another damn year in that place.

"You should all quit being ninja's!" the jounin shouted in anger as they all looked mortified at the news. "You Sasuke did nothing to help your teammates, you Sakura did nothing to help Naruto when he was hanging upside down in that tree and you Naruto didn't even try to get help from your teammates!" he shouted furiously as everyone looked down in shame.

Just as he was about to give them the second test he felt the presence of another ninja in the area. It wasn't well hidden as it seemed like the ninja wanted to be spotted. Looking towards a tree with the corner of his eyes Kakashi could see an ANBU there, the ninja made a few hand signs towards the jounin whose eyes widened for a second. Apparently the Hokage wished an audience with him and his team meaning that he had to pass them. He saw the ANBU saying that it's urgent and that they need to get there fast.

Sighing, the jounin turned towards his students and looked at them. He decided to cut things short and pass this team for now, hopefully the Hokage knew what he was doing. "You were placed in a team so you can work together." he said sternly as their eyes widened, they finally understood what they had to do from the start. "Working together to achieve your goals, that's what teams are for," The jounin said as he crossed his hands over his chest.

"We're sorry sensei." Naruto said with a downcast voice as the other two nodded, though Sasuke a bit slower then the others. The jounin smiled as he untied the blond. "Come on, we got to meet the Hokage now. We are officially a team." He said as the three genin cheered.

Kakashi looked towards the trees once more, the ANBU wasn't there anymore. He silently sighed as he hoped that the Hokage knew what he was doing. He knew that Sarutobi was wise and all that and the fact that he knew a lot, but he was hoping he wouldn't go senile and just pass students like this and send them to their deaths. He shook those thoughts away; there was no way that the old man would go senile now, or any time soon. It didn't look that why at least and hopefully it will never happen.

* * *

Kakashi blinked in surprise, he didn't know what to say at what he just heard. Somehow he had a feeling that the Hokage had finally gone insane because of the paperwork. Or did he have a motive for what he was doing? He wasn't sure about that, what he was sure about was the fact that the Hokage just wanted them to take a mission. Now! His team just passed the exam and they had to do some training first, they had to do some team building…heck they had to do some D-ranks before taking on a C-rank.

"Excuse me Hokage-sama?" Kakashi asked shaking himself out of his stupor. His students were rooted in place, with their mouths open in shock at what they just heard.

"You heard me right Kakashi, I want your team to go on a C-rank, but don't worry, it's not that much of a C-rank, it's more like a D-rank." The Hokage said with a smile trying to reassure the jounin who looked deathly pale. Maybe the man was envious that his team was taking a C-rank right off the bat when he had to wait several weeks or months until he and the team he was working with could take their very first.

"Then why label it as a C-rank?" asked Kakashi crossing his hands over his chest and looking angry and curious at the same time.

"You might encounter some traps here and there…no action like fighting bandits or ninja will occur." The old man said with a reassuring tone as the jounin seemed to relax. "Besides, a team of ANBU will be there as well to help." He said with a smile as Kakashi visibly relaxed.

"What do we have to do?" asked the silver haired jounin.

"That's simple, you have to retrieve an item, and you will see it when you get there." He told them as they raised an eyebrow in confusion. "Go to the market and go down in the canals…" the team's eyebrows twitched as they heard that, they were starting to doubt this is C-rank or some bullshit like that. "…turn to your right and keep going down until you see the team of ANBU, from there you will know what you have to do." The old man said making Kakashi suspicious.

"Very well…" the jounin said as he motioned to his team to turn and leave. Just as he was about to leave he heard the Hokage say something, only he heard it as his team never stopped moving or looked back.

"What you saw about Naruto, its S-rank secret, talk and the punishment will be capital." He said as the jounin gulped and nodded before walking out of the room. He didn't want to lose his head because he wanted to tell someone that one of his students was an angel in disguise.

That alone was frightening, for years he thought that Naruto is just an ordinary kid. Or as ordinary as one can get with a bijuu sealed inside of you. He had never used the sharingan on him up until now since he didn't see a reason why he should. But now he wished that he had used it faster, maybe if he would have known faster about the boy's status then it wouldn't be so shocking now and maybe he would have find out why he was an angel…or something like that.

As he stepped out of the Hokage tower he saw his team walking in front of him heading towards the market place. He picked up the pace and started walking behind them in silence. He looked at his team, a blond mystery, a pink haired fan-girl and an avenger that didn't want to show her real gender. He shook his head and then looked at Satsuki and Naruto. He chuckled, just thinking of how it would be if they ended up together. He could still remember when he heard from Itachi what she said about the blond, a year before the massacre. She was young back then and naïve, but now, she wasn't like that anymore.

He looked at the blond and frowned, he wondered how long he had been what he is. Not a Jinchuuriki, but an angel. He wondered if he had always been one, if Minato's son was actually dead and something else took his place to harbor the Kyuubi and keep it at bay. He shook that train of thoughts away; he didn't want to think that his sensei's son was dead. Even though he had rarely helped Naruto, he didn't want to lose the only connection he had with the Yondaime.

The jounin then looked towards Sakura and sighed, she really needed some real training and she had to realize that the ninja world was not a fantasy world filled with success for ninja. It was a deadly place with heartbreaking events, people died more then they lived. He almost laughed as a thought occurred to him, when Satsuki will reveal herself the girl would be shocked, incredibly shocked just like all the other fan-girls in the village.

Looking back at Naruto he nodded to himself as he knew that he had to straighten the boy out, so he would stop following Sakura blindly. The jounin's eyes narrowed as he saw the bangs under the blond's eyes, he didn't notice them until now. He wondered if Naruto slept last night, he also seemed pretty shaken up.

The boy in question suddenly raised his head and looked back at Kakashi who just raised an eyebrow. The blond blinked before looking in front of him once more. Kakashi was amazed; the boy was able to feel him staring at him. Or maybe the boy was just so paranoid that he could feel anyone looking at him. He sighed sadly, the village had made the poor boy so paranoid, and if only they had tried to look underneath the underneath then they would have realized that Naruto wasn't what they portrayed him to be, in fact, he was a great guy…when he wanted to be.

Kakashi looked up as they found themselves in the market place. A few more steps and they arrived at the manhole leading down into the sewers. He sighed; this was not the type of mission he would have wanted to take. However, the Hokage had been in the sewers as well when he banished Orochimaru for his experiments. Kakashi involuntary shivered thinking of what the snake was doing down in that laboratory.

"Eww…" Sakura protested as Naruto moved the lid away and jumped inside without saying anything. "I don't want to go in there, it stinks, it has rats and it's not for a lady like me!" she shouted her disapproval as Sasuke rolled his eyes and jumped down.

"_Yea…lady…whatever you say…"_ Sasuke thought.

"Sakura, your teammates already went, do you want to disappoint them?" the jounin asked as the girl gulped and looked down at the manhole. She shook her head thinking that Sasuke will be disappointed in her, she didn't want that to happen, she had to prove to her love that she can do anything. Without a second thought she started climbing down in the manhole as Kakashi chuckled while looking at her face.

A few moments later the jounin dropped down and an ANBU appeared near the manhole. He grabbed the lid and placed it back in its spot. The people looked at what happened in surprise wondering what the Uchiha was doing down there. The ninja vanished in a puff of smoke before someone came to ask him anything.

Down in the sewers, Team 7 was battling with the foul scent. Sakura felt like puking as the scent moved into her nostrils, this was beyond disgusting for her. Kakashi looked at Sasuke and saw he was shaken as well, he silently chuckled, poor girl. She was trying to keep her façade up and at the same time not to puke. Looking at Naruto he was surprised to see that he wasn't all that affected by the stench.

"Well…lets go!" the blond said looking back "I really don't want to spend my entire day here."

"For once, I agree with the dope." Sasuke said as Sakura nodded in agreement, she really wanted to go home now and wash, take a shower, then a long bath, then another shower and then another bath. She also had to send her mother to buy lots and lots of soap and shampoo.

"Alright, let's go then." Kakashi said as the team started walking slowly on the bricks towards their destination. The last thing they needed now was to fall in that sewer water. It made their stomachs turn only thinking about it.

"Next time, I will throw the shampoos and soaps in here, that way it will smell nicer." The blond silently mumbled to himself not wanting anyone to hear. They were still pissed about that 'minor' incident and since they couldn't blame him seeing as he was 'in the hospital' they were still fuming when thinking about it.

It didn't take long and the team reached the ANBU stationed in the sewers. Kakashi was surprised to see the leader there with two teammates. The ninja nodded towards Team 7 as they made several hand seals and the wall near them shimmered. Team 7 was surprised when a hole appeared in the wall; the ANBU walked inside and motioned for them to follow. They did as they were told.

Kakashi however was thinking why would the Hokage send his team to retrieve whatever object there is to retrieve if he had already sent the ANBU down here? He could have told them to retrieve that object. Why were they really down here? He stopped thinking as he passed through the hole and looked in wonder at what he was seeing. They were currently in a strange cave, very big. They were like ants inside the cave.

His eyes then moved towards a strange temple from what it seemed, it was located at the end of the cavern. It had a large door which was opened and big stairs leading towards the door in question. Two statues that resembled warriors from ancient times holding pikes could be seen near the door. The statues were facing each other and the pikes were intertwined. Columns sustained the ceiling of the building and there seemed to be no other door.

"Cool…." The blond said with awe in his voice as he gazed upon the massive structure. This was something you don't see every day.

"This is where we stop." They heard the ANBU say as they took a few steps back. "We will wait here." They said as the blond grinned and started running towards the stairs.

"Wait Naruto!" Kakashi shouted as he extended his hand towards the blond who was now walking up the stairs. The boy turned towards the jounin and grinned.

"Come on sensei, old man Hokage said we need to retrieve some item inside." He said as he kept on walking, soon Sasuke and Sakura started walking towards the stairs.

"But what about traps?" he asked.

"Ouch!" he heard Sakura exclaim as she was lying on her butt rubbing her head and Sasuke was touching the air from what it seemed.

Puzzled, Kakashi walked towards his students and touched the air in front of him like Sasuke was doing. He was shocked to feel a wall of some sorts there. He hit the air with his fist and grit his teeth in pain; there was definitely a wall there. It was invisible. But still, how did Naruto pass through the wall? He looked up to tell the blond to turn back and ask him how he got inside when he heard the doors to the building slam shut. He frantically looked up to see where Naruto was, but the boy was nowhere in sight.

His heart skipped a beat as he started calling out his name, fearing for his well-being. But, no answer came. The blond was nowhere in sight, he turned towards the ANBU that had appeared near him in a second. They touched the wall as well, the captain looked at one of his members and told him to report to the Hokage, as the man vanished he looked back at the wall.

"Step back please." He declared as Team 7 took a few steps back. The captain started flashing through hand signs and then touched the wall. A few moments later seals appeared in the air, he looked at the seals and frowned. "Not good."

Kakashi who knew a little bit about seals frowned as well. "Your right…"

"What's going on sensei?" Sakura asked with worry evident in her voice. "Is Naruto alright? What are those?"

"I don't know about Naruto." The jounin answered truthfully "All I know is that we can't break these seals, they are too complex, only the Yondaime or the Sannin Jiraiya could break them."

"Then how did the dobe walk through this wall?" asked Sasuke in anger though the jounin could detect worry in her voice.

"I…don't know…" the jounin replied as he looked towards the building.

* * *

"Crap." The blond said as he was kneeling on the floor, his sword next to him. He was panting and sweating. Just as the door slammed shut behind him he tried and tried to break it with clones and his sword. But nothing worked. He was stuck inside.

"I guess I have to do this on my own." He said to himself as he turned around, in front of him was a long hallway with no left or right turns. He slowly started walking through the hallway, there was no going back, he couldn't open the door by himself but there might be something at the end of the hallway, he might be able to find another exit.

As he kept on walking he looked left and right at the walls, numerous drawings were present on the wall. He recognized some of the drawings as they were portraying people, men and women alike but he did not understand what meaning they had. It showed them fighting against each other, and then it showed them fighting against some strange creatures. He thought he recognized some of the creatures there but he couldn't be sure. The drawing was very old and in some places it could hardly be recognized as a drawing.

The hallway seemed like it would never end, he had lost all interest in looking at the walls a few minutes ago. How long has he been walking for? Fifteen minutes? Thirty? Or was he already walking for an hour? He didn't know it seemed like the hallway would never end. Or so it seemed. Just as he was about to give up and stop walking, he saw a light not far away. He grinned happily as he started running towards the source of the light. A few moments later he entered in a large oval room with many statues holding the ceiling in place, a lot of drawings on the walls and on the ceiling as well.

The blond slowly walked into the middle of the room, walking up three steps. He found himself standing on something like a podium, only that it was round and very close to the ground. He scratched his head wondering what he was looking for here. There was no other way to go, just to turn around and go back the way he came.

He then heard footsteps coming from behind him; he turned around wondering if his sensei managed to open the door and followed him. However, what he saw shocked him; he took a step back in shock. Behind him stood a monster, its skin was red, it had two large horns on top of its head, the body resembled a human, but it had claw like feet instead of normal feet, claws instead of hands and it was holding a large broadsword. The creature snarled at the blond as it started walking towards him.

It was dragging the large sword with it, the sound of its metal resonated throughout the chamber. The blond was frozen in place, he didn't know what to do, his body was not responding. With each step the creature took his breathing became more ragged. As the creature was just a few feet away from him it raised its sword. He knew that the creature was going to kill him; it was going to try and kill him. He had to do something, he had to defend himself.

As the creature raised its sword the blond reacted, his hand moved to his own sword and with a swift motion he unsheathed his weapon and parried the enemies attack. He grit his teeth as he felt the monster giving more power towards the attack adding pressure. The blond jumped backwards and moved his body to the side as the monsters large sword crashed on the ground. He then delivered a kick to the creatures chin making it fall on its back.

As the creature dropped on the ground the blond jumped on top of it with his sword, he impaled the creature in the chest. The monster roared in pain, but before the blond could cut the creature in two it grabbed him by the throat and slammed him on the ground. The boy gasped in pain as the creature continued to slam him on the cold floor. Gritting his teeth, the boy grabbed the creatures arm and started struggling. He kicked it in the chest making it lose its grip on him.

Naruto jumped away as the creature stumbled backwards. His sword vanished from the creature and reappeared in his hand, he would have been shocked if he wasn't busy with parrying the monsters constant attacks. His eyes glowed white for a second as a light shot from the ceiling, from what it seemed, on the creature making it howl in pain. Naruto watched as the creature was being burned by white fire. Raising his sword, the blond dashed towards the creature, he moved his sword back behind him and then plunged it in the creature. The entire weapon went through its skin and the boy found his left hand inside the creature's chest. The monster's eyes unfocused as it dropped on its knees, the sword dropped from its hand.

Naruto pulled his hand and weapon out of the creature and took a few steps back in shock. He had just killed, even if it wasn't a human being, he had just killed something. A living creature, despite the fact that it was an abomination it still was a living creature! His hand started shaking as he heard another set of footsteps. Not wanting to be taken by surprise again, the blond raised his sword and turned towards the hallway. He was shocked however when he saw who was there. It was an angel.

"Excellently done." The angel said in a male voice. He was wearing a white robe with a hood over his head; he had plate armor over the robe and flat shoulder guards. Two swords were strapped to his waist, two white plate gloves and large wings, larger then his.

"I assume you are wondering…who I am…" the angel said as the blond nodded dumbly, not trusting his voice. "We have a lot to talk about…and you won't like it." The angel said.

* * *

Hours passed and team Kakashi was starting to get more and more worried over the blond boy. The ANBU that left to report to the Hokage hadn't come back and only the captain remained who looked equally nervous. Kakashi was looking more and more pale with each passing minute, memories of his old teammates started appearing through his mind, the thought of losing a student on just the first day was starting to plague and kill him on the inside.

The captain was doing his best in calming the jounin and telling him that everything was alright and that the blond will come out unharmed, but the jounin was starting to doubt all that. Sasuke and Sakura didn't know what to do in helping their sensei, they were also worried about Naruto and they were also mad at him for recklessly going in the temple without waiting for them. If only they kept a closer eye on him, after all, Naruto has always been a trouble maker, that wouldn't have changed so soon with him becoming a genin.

They were broken out of their thoughts as the doors to the temple suddenly opened. Kakashi's head snapped up so fast that the captain thought he heard his neck break. Not wasting any time, the jounin jumped on his feet and ran towards the invisible wall waiting to see if it's Naruto coming out of the temple and if he was unharmed. To his relief it was the blond boy, he was slowly walking down the steps with his head down, and the jounin sighed in relief as he thanked Kami for the boy's wellbeing.

He was about to open his mouth and berate the boy for his stunt when he saw something strange regarding said boy. First was the fact that he was empty handed, he didn't have the object that the Sandaime wanted retrieved, which was no major problem in Kakashi's mind, the boy's safety was more important than some item. But the second problem was Naruto himself. He could clearly see the boy shaking, fright, anxiety? Or maybe he caught a cold? He didn't know the answer to any of those.

"Naruto?" he asked as the boy just passed by him not even bothering to answer him or stop.

Sasuke and Sakura blinked as they saw the blond move past their sensei and not even stopping to answer him. "Baka! What were you thinking?" Sakura shouted angrily as she stormed over to the blond and grabbed his hand. She gasped and let go of his hand and then screamed in fright. Her hand was covered in blood, the jounin and her teammate watched with wide eyes as the blond's hand dropped next to his body, his hand was all bloody.

"Naruto!" Kakashi shouted in fright as he ran to his student to check his condition "What happened to you?" he asked with fright evident in his voice.

The blond stopped for a second as he turned towards his sensei. "I…I need to be … alone…" he said with a frightened voice, his face pale.

Before Kakashi could say anything the boy continued. "I learned…something…I … need to understand what my purpose is now…" he said as he turned around and started walking away once more.

The jounin stood rooted in place not understanding what the boy said, he looked at Sakura who was looking at the blood on her hand with fright, he then looked back towards the blond only to see him exit through the hole in the wall and into the sewer. He frowned as he decided he will have to demand some explanations from the Sandaime regarding all of this.

* * *

It was dark and quiet outside. The stars were sparkling on the clear sky, no clouds could be seen, the moon was fully visible on the night sky and its light was shinning in the blond boy's room. The boy was currently sitting on his bed, facing the window, with his head down, looking at the ground. He wasn't moving or blinking for that matter.

"_The first sign will be the clear sky and the full moon."_

The light of the moon moved over the boy as he became tense, his hand moved towards the hilt of his sword ready to pull it out any moment and cut down anything or anyone that wanted to take him down. He was on full alert, but he was calm on the outside. On the inside, he was scared, he was confused, angry, happy…but those emotions did not surface to the exterior.

"_It's a path paved in blood and horrors."_

He felt a presence in the house, someone or something was inside. His grip on the sword tightened. If what he had learned was true then that meant he will no longer have any peace, that indeed he had been cursed further more then he already was. But, for them coming so fast, appearing only after the first sign, it wasn't right. But he had told him, they never respect the rules, they always surprise you and always come when you least expect them.

"Naruto." a voice was heard, he could detect worry in the person's voice, he was still on high alert. He told him, they love to trick the mind. They love to bend reality to their own needs.

He could feel the person, or the thing, coming closer towards him. He was ready to lift his weapon and cut whoever was near him in half. He didn't do that however, he felt the person, or thing, sitting down on the bed, not far from him. He could her, him, or it, sigh sadly. So many emotions he could feel radiating from the person, he was starting to doubt it was his enemy.

"Naruto…I wanted to talk to you about today." the man said, he could recognize his voice. It was his sensei, Kakashi.

He did not answer however, nor did he give a sign that he was aware of his presence. Kakashi knew however that the blond was listening to him. He looked at the blond and many questions raced through his head, his meeting with the Hokage had not been what he had hoped for, he didn't receive the answers he was looking for and he still didn't know what happened to his blond pupil. So his only option was to talk to Naruto and find out from him what exactly happened in that temple.

"I want you to know, that whatever you did…I'm proud of your choice." Kakashi said as he remembered when the Yondaime told him the same thing, it was when he made his first kill, his sensei had not been there to see it and he didn't tell his sensei that he had killed. The Yondaime had figured it out by himself and tried to calm him with a few words, to let him know that it was alright. But surely Naruto didn't kill anyone in the temple; the Sandaime said that there was no way any living being could be there. But then again…the Sandaime had been wrong about some traps…

"Whatever you did in that temple, whatever choice you made…" he said as he took a deep breath "…know that I am proud of that choice." He said as he looked towards the blond who still hadn't moved from his spot. "I don't care that you didn't retrieve what we had to, I don't care about that…" he told the blond as he looked out the window. "Even if you had to, Kami forbid, kill someone in that temple…" at this the blond tensed, it went unnoticed by the jounin who was too lost in his memories and thoughts "…I know that you had no other choice and that you had to do it…this is the life of a ninja, it has its ups and it has its downs, whatever path you chose I will always be there to help guide you."

"_There is no other path to take, this path has been sealed."_

Kakashi stood up as he walked towards the window and placed his hands behind his back, he sighed lightly. "Someday, you will have to kill a lot of people to save others. Someday, you will have to kill people you thought close to you when they betray you. Someday…you will have to kill…just so you can survive." The jounin turned around and started walking towards the door. "It's the life of a ninja, there is nothing we can do, death will eventually make its way towards everyone…" he said with a soft voice. "If you ever want to talk to someone…I will listen and I will help as much as I can." He told the blond as he left, his mind still drifting towards what might have happened in the temple. He didn't know if the blood was Naruto's or not…he could only guess.

As the jounin left the room, the blond slowly turned his head towards the door and sighed. _"If only you knew what I need to do…"_ he thought as he looked towards the window and a sad smile appeared on his face _"At least I know you care…"_

* * *

**Closing comments: Once more I thank my beta Silhouette of a Life for beta-ing the story. Hope you guys enjoyed this chapter and hope you will enjoy the next ones that will come (Damn it all, I didn't reach the 10k mark with this chapter).**

**Also, I hope the chapter didn't seem rushed, I mean, someone said that last chapter was a bit rushed so I tried to correct that. Hopefully I managed to do so.  
**


	3. Path paved in Blood I

**Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto**

**Archangel – Chapter 3: Path paved in Blood (I)**

It was early in the morning when the blond "woke up". Even now, after the talk he had with the angel, he still couldn't catch even a sliver of slumber. It was either the nightmares that didn't let him sleep, the truth of what happened to him, or what those two Jutsus stood for. Who would have thought that the demons had this much influence over the world? People were oblivious to what was really going on around them. And they actually thought that the Bijuu were the worst thing that could happen to them! They didn't even know half of it. The Bijuu were the least of their problems, or at least they weren't a problem for now.

Looking over the cup of ramen he started thinking of what he could do. Why should it be only him to fight against all those odds? Surely the others could be involved; this was a fight that they needed to partake in. Why only him? There was nothing special about him; he was just an ordinary boy. Or as ordinary as you can be considering the fact that you're a ninja, but he was still a kid. He had no combat experience, he had no knowledge of tactics, and he knew nothing. And from what he was told, he didn't have much time until he had to fight. That thought alone scared him, thinking that he will soon need to go on the battlefield and fend for himself against armies… that terrified him.

He blinked as he looked down at the cup of ramen, again his mind was playing tricks on him, or something was trying to make him go insane. The cup was filled with the same contents as yesterday. And it made him feel like puking, even though the angel said that they could trick the eyes and mind, they can't trick the senses and even though the smell of ramen constantly invaded his nostrils, he still couldn't bring himself to pick up his chopsticks and eat it. This was another sign that they were drawing close, but it also raised a question in his mind. What if his tenant was to blame for all this? He didn't know what Kyuubi's role was; the angel didn't say anything about the Bijuu, not even when he asked. In fact, when he did inquire what the Bijuu really were, the angel inquired what a Bijuu was.

If the divine powers had no knowledge of the Bijuu, either the angel lied and this was a test for him to find what the Bijuu really are, or the angel really didn't know who or what they were. Sighing, the blond pushed himself away from the table and stood up; he turned around and walked into his room to get ready for the team meeting. His mind was filled with unanswered questions. Questions such as why the Jutsus still existed if they proved such a threat, why they let the demons have so much power over the world and many other questions. The majority was never answered by the angel and he would probably have to find the answer himself, he didn't really enjoy that.

He closed his eyes as his head started hurting, since this morning he started having headaches. They would come and go; some would be barely noticeable some would impair his mind so much he felt that it would explode any moment. He began gritting his teeth as he felt that this particular one was going to hurt the most. His head was starting to ache more and more, as images began to flash before his eyes.

"_You don't understand! You never want to understand!" An angel yelled towards another, rage evident in her voice. _

_The angel yelled at turned towards her and sighed. "No, you and the rest are the ones that don't understand. We have to do this, we either kill them now or we curse this land to darkness." He replied as he turned around and started walking towards a strange looking portal. _

Naruto's eyes snapped open; he was panting heavily and sweating lightly… What just happened? What did he see? Something from the future, or was it the past? Shaking his head, the blond slowly stood up and sat down on his bed. He extended his hands and looked at them; things were getting stranger. First it was the nightmares, now he was starting to see images from throughout time. He closed his eyes and started focusing, he was however curious what happened between the two angels and what the male was referring to when he said that they had to kill someone.

A few minutes passed and nothing happened, the blond sighed as he stood up and walked away from his bed. He would think about what happened later, he had a team meeting to get to. Without wasting any time the blond walked out of his house and into the streets of Konoha. His stomach grumbled and he frowned, hunger wasn't a bad thing, after all he had gone without eating for a week at max when he was little and nothing bad happened. Well, he did faint in the middle of the class and was in the hospital for a month because of that, but it was better than eating worms and insects from a cup of ramen.

As he kept on walking through the streets of Konoha, he suddenly realized that he was going the wrong way, the opposite direction of where the training ground was. And what was strange was the fact that even though he knew this, he didn't want to turn around and walk towards the training grounds. It was like something was pulling him in the opposite direction, it was like there was something there that he wanted to see, that he wanted to find. A few minutes later the blond realized that he was walking towards the graveyard, he raised an eyebrow wondering what was pulling him in that direction.

As he drew closer to the graveyard he started feeling a strange aura around the area, it was weak and he couldn't read it like the angel taught him. Another strange thing was the fact that civilians were also walking towards the graveyard, they seemed curious about something. People were chatting amongst themselves; he could catch some of the words like "grave robbers" and "defilers". He knew what those words meant, but he was curious what would people want with the dead.

Naruto looked at the large number of civilians in front of him; the graveyard was beyond the mass. He could hear someone shouting from the other side, whatever pulled him to this place it wanting him to see something or to find out something. He knew this since the feeling he was getting was becoming stronger with each step he took and the aura around the area would intensify making it a bit more descriptive. Not wasting any time, the blond started making his way through the mass by pushing the civilians to the side. Some would look at him with a questioning gaze while others would sneer in his directing and silently asking what he was doing here.

A few moments later the blond reached the end of the mass and the entrance to the graveyard, two ANBU were stationed at the entrance and the gate was closed. The ninja looked at the blond in silence, they didn't say anything nor did they move, but he could feel them staring at him. Surely they could see through the Genjutsu, therefore they were somewhat stunned of what they were seeing. Naruto looked around, the gates and the wall seemed normal, he looked beyond the gates into the graveyard but he still couldn't see anything out of place. He looked up at the two ninja and slowly approached them.

"Excuse me?" He said politely, "can I enter?" Naruto requested; the boy didn't know for sure why he asked that question instead of asking what happened. He could hear the people around him whispering, but he couldn't understand what they were in the first place.

One of the ninja answered after a few moments of silence. "Yes, you can go in." he replied as he opened the gate for the blond, the civilians looked amazed with what happened.

The blond slowly nodded as he walked inside, the doorway closing behind him. He wasted no time in walking deeper into the graveyard. The two ninja's looked at the retreating blond and then back at each other, while murmuring amongst themselves.

"You know, when the Hokage told us about him… I thought he had gone senile," the one that let the blond in whispered to his nodding partner.

"Yeah I know… you think… he is the one that would judge us?" he asked "You know… when we die."

"I don't know… but if it's so, then I feel sorry for those that wronged him." The ninja replied as his partner nodded slowly.

Inside the graveyard, the blond was slowly walking down the path and looking around at each grave and tombstone. Nothing seemed out of place and yet, everything seemed out of place. He couldn't describe the feeling he was getting when he entered the graveyard, but it was like someone was calling him, or something was calling out for him. It was like there was something here that wanted to be found, but whatever it was it wasn't good. The feelings he was getting… rotten, evil, despicable…

As he kept walking he suddenly came to a halt as he felt the aura intensify near him. Looking around he spotted something out of place, the grass around a grave was scorched and said grave was dug up and empty. He walked over to the grave and kneeled in front of it, he didn't actually care about the place; he was more interested in the scorched ground. For a few minutes the boy kept looking at the ground, dark tendrils of smoke would rise from time to time and dissipate in the air. He shivered unconsciously for a second as the voice of the angel echoed throughout his mind.

"_If you find scorched ground, leave the area, they might still be there. You are still too weak to fight them. Don't assume any risks."_

He slowly stood up; if the angel was right then whatever was here was too powerful for him to beat. He wasn't dumb, he knew that the ninja wouldn't be capable of beating whatever was here, he knew that, somewhere deep down he knew that an entire army of ninja wouldn't be able to defeat whatever was here. Just as he was about to turn and leave he felt a presence behind him, then another and another. His senses were on high alert, slowly moved his hand to the swords hilt prepared to unsheathe it.

"Naruto? What are you doing here?" He heard the familiar voice of the Hokage. He sighed in relief as he turned around to face the Hokage and ten ANBU. He slowly moved his hand away from the swords hilt, an act which the ninja and the Hokage could clearly see.

"You startled me," the blond said as he walked towards the Hokage, "for a second I thought you were something else."

The ninja looked at each other wondering why the blond used the term "something" instead of "someone"; only the Hokage vaguely knew what the blond was referring to. He might have expected some type of creature to be here and attack him.

"So, did you find anything?" The Hokage asked as the boy looked back at the seared earth, a fact that everyone noticed.

"Jiji…" The blond started as he looked back at the Hokage, "how many graves were dug up?" He asked.

The old man stood in silence for a few seconds.

"About a hundred," he replied, "all of them were graves of ninja, all apart from one and that one held something rather valuable, not to the village and not to the Hokage, but towards someone else. "

"Hokages?" The blond asked seriously, he didn't know why he asked that but he had a very bad feeling of what might have happened if the dead Hokages were reanimated… or their bodies at least. He didn't know if they would still have their techniques, but if they still had them, then it would have been a problem.

"None, their graves are hidden," the old man replied.

"Are you sure?" The blond inquired as he looked around, "this is very important."

The aged shinobi nodded but that didn't seem to satisfy the blond, "I want to see them," he replied as everyone looked at him like he had grown a second head; no one was allowed to enter to sacred tombs of the Hokages', apart from the current one and a few selected ANBU.

"I'm afraid that is not possible Naruto," Sarutobi stated, "only classified personnel are allowed to enter their graves."

The blond slowly walked over to the Hokage and motioned for him to come closer. Curious, the Hokage bent forward and listened as the blond whispered. "Jiji… I don't know about you, but I really don't want to fight them later on," he said as the Hokage raised an eyebrow.

"What do you mean?" The Kage whispered back.

"I'm sure you realize that no one is capable of digging up a hundred graves in one night, especially with all the patrols?" The blond stated as the Sandaime closed his eyes and nodded, with all that happened ever since the blond used the two Jutsus some things were just not real anymore. He had to look beyond reality now.

"Very well… follow me," he said while walking towards the Hokage monument. The blond nodded and slowly started following the Hokage with the ANBU close behind them. He looked back at the scorched ground one last time and then towards the Hokage monument. He had to risk it, it was better to be safe than sorry.

* * *

The boy blinked in surprise, who would have thought that the Hokage's graves were underneath the monument? He watched as the old man made several hand signs and then a massive gateway was revealed in front of them. The ANBU moved to the door and grabbed the handles, he watched as they slowly opened the doors for the Hokage and him. The blond slowly walked towards the opened door, as a cold breeze hit his face, making him shiver.

His eyes narrowed as he started walking down into the "tomb" as he dubbed it. A few moments later the Hokage followed and just as the ANBU were about to pursue him, the old man ordered them to stay outside and guard, they did as they were told. As they kept walking down the narrow hallway, descending deeper into the mountain, the blond noticed that the light was starting to diminish. He stopped as he looked behind and saw several torches on the wall illuminating the hallway; he then looked in front of him and saw more of the illuminating objects, only that they were extinguished.

"Hmm…" He heard the old man, "strange, those torches were supposed to be burning," he stated as he started making a few hand signs. As he was done with the seals the old man touched the walls and the torches suddenly lit up. The blond was surprised a jutsu like that existed… if it was a jutsu at least.

Then the old man's words rang through his mind, those torches were supposed to have been burning. His eyes narrowed as he moved his hand towards the swords hilt and started walking down the path once more. The Sandaime noticed the boy moving his hand to the blade; he tensed even though his mind told him that there was nothing wrong with the tomb. The torches would sometimes extinguish and a ninja with the right knowledge would always have to light them up from time to time.

After walking for a few more minutes down the path the blond felt that aura again, looking around he noticed the walls were arid, the ground seared as footprints could be seen in the earth. He tensed as he unsheathed his sword and started moving faster down the path. The Sandaime wasted no time in taking out a kunai from his hidden pouch and following the young blond.

The blond slowed down as he reached the end of the hallway, stopping in front of a large golden door. He raised his sword and started looking around; the aura was not present here nor was the ground scorched. He walked to the door and put his hand over it, he tried to open them but he found out that they were closed. He slightly turned his head towards the Sandaime, who nodded and walked over to the door. The old man bit his finger and smeared blood on the door. A few seconds later they could hear the door unlock and see it open.

As the doors opened the blond stepped into a large circularly room, the ceiling was sustained by a total of forty pylons: ten representing trees and nature, ten representing water, ten representing apes and finally, ten representing frogs and the sun. In the middle of the room stood four coffins, flowers of all kind were present at its base; the coffins were placed on stone slightly raised up. The blond looked around the room, there was only one way in, he couldn't see any holes in the walls or on the ceiling. He lowered his sword and walked to the coffins.

He looked through the glass at the first Hokage. He stood there looking at his face.

"They are all preserved by a special jutsu," the old man stated as the blond nodded, it was a bit strange looking at the face of the forty year old Kage. He shook his head as he started looking at the rest of the Kages, the second and the fourth. Once more he stopped when looking at the fourth. The man who sealed the Kyuubi inside of him, looking at his face he thought he could see himself, maybe it was the hair, it was the same spiky blond, but then again it could always be a coincidence.

He looked back at the entrance, there was nothing out of place here, but did that mean someone tried to break inside? Looking around the blond decided to try a spell the angel taught him. He took a few steps away from the coffins and raised his sword up, he then turned it around so that the edge would face the ground, and slammed it in the floor shocking the old man. But as the blade embedded itself within the earth, the blond kneeled, an intense beam of light blasting from him towards the ceiling. As the light hit the ceiling it started expanding in all directions, covering every inch of the room.

The Sandaime was fascinated by what he was seeing, on top of that he could also hear strange voices echo around the blond, whispers, it was like the wind and the ghosts were murmuring to the blond everything that was in the room. He watched as the light expanded in the entire area, covering every inch of the ground and then moving out the door and into the hallway, illuminating it along the way. He was a bit mad when he slammed the weapon in the ground, the floor took a lot of time to make and maintenance was a pain in the ass.

He could hear the words, telling him everything that was happening in the room and in the hallway; he could hear them telling him how the torches were burning and how the malevolent aura was still surrounding the same area in the hallway. How the dark shadows of the scorched ground was slowly making it way upwards and then evaporating, the wind blowing in the hallway from the open door where the ninja were stationed, the ninja in question talking about him and the Hokage and other things.

A few minutes later the blond opened his eyes and the light slowly started to vanish, he sighed as he pulled his sword out of the ground and stood up. He shook his head, there was nothing here, the elements, the spirits, they all said the same; there wasn't anything. Whatever came here, it didn't come all the way down, it stopped midway and then left. Maybe it was on its way down here when they entered the hallway, maybe whatever was here felt them come and left before they arrived.

"Find anything?" The Sandaime asked as he walked towards the blond.

"No… there's nothing here apparently." the young angel said as he sheathed his sword and sighed in relief, at least he didn't have to face the reanimated corpses of the kages later on.

"Come on…" The old man said as he placed his hand on the blond's shoulder, "Let's leave…" He said as they both started walking away. After stepping out of the room, the door closed behind them and locked itself.

Shadows started appearing in the room as the click of the door was heard. The shadows moved towards the coffins and formed a head, a pair of red eyes watching as the angel and the old man started walking up the path once more. The shadow morphed, making itself a mouth and then grinned evilly as it slowly sunk in the ground. A low rumble similar to a chuckle could be heard while the shadow sunk in the ground.

* * *

It was a busy day in Konoha; the villagers were more active than all the other days. People could be seen running like crazy from shop to shop like flies would go from one shit to another. Everyone had their own desire, for the men, a book from the legendary Sannin Jiraiya had been released; for the women, it was a wide assortment of perfumes from Kusa. However, there were those that were out on their daily routines go there and buy that, go there and sell that and all the other.

Naruto could be seen walking through the busy streets of Konoha in deep thought. People had to avoid him so that they wouldn't knock into him, because he was so deep in his thoughts that he wasn't even looking where he was going. People around him were already started to follow him for a simple reason. They were placing bets to see when he would hit a pole and how hard he would smash into it. It was a rather interesting sight, usually the citizens of Konoha didn't want to do anything with the blond Jinchuuriki, but when it came to their entertainment they didn't really give a fuck about anything.

Of course the blond was completely obvious to all of this; he was too preoccupied with what happened in the morning. How he felt drawn to the cemetery and the scorched ground. He wondered what kind of demon was that; he wondered where the demon could have disappeared and how powerful it was. Just how great could a grave robbing demon be? But still, considering the angels constant warnings, there had to be something about the demon that made him just, out of the ordinary. But there was nothing to give him any insight on what he could face, he couldn't compare this one with Kyuubi since he didn't face Kyuubi and from what he learned in the academy and from the Hokage, the Kyuubi was supposed to be the ultimate badass demon.

"Naruto!" The blond heard someone yell making him stop dead in his tracks. He looked up and saw his pink haired teammate, she looked very pissed, and behind her were Sasuke and Kakashi, "where the hell have you been?" She demanded as she stormed towards the blond boy who gulped and tried to turn around and run from the 'demon' in front of him. He didn't manage to even turn as she appeared in front of him with amazing speed and grabbed him with both her hands by the neck and started shaking him viciously.

"We waited three hours for you to arrive!" she yelled angrily while shaking the blond, "Kakashi-sensei arrived in two hours and then we had to wait an hour for you before we grew tired and started looking for you!"

"But… Sakura… chan…" The blond tried to explain himself as the girl tightened her hold on him and glared harder.

"No buts!" She snapped, "I woke up at six in the morning to be at the meeting place at seven, and this is what I get?"

"Mah, mah Sakura, maybe Naruto got lost on the road of life," the Jounin said with an eye smile as the girl stopped shaking the blond and slowly turned her head towards the Jounin, a deadly look was plastered on her face making the Sharingan-user slightly gulp. He had some deadly encounters with angry women; he didn't need one right now.

"Actually… I have a valid reason why I was late," the blond said thinking fast.

The girl's head snapped in his direction faster than anyone could imagine; the blond gulped as her eyes pierced fiercely through his skull.

"Speak," she demanded.

"I was at the cemetery…" He said as he gulped slightly hoping she would believe him.

The girl blinked three times before letting the blond go, mouthing an 'oh' and then looking away feeling bad for believing that the blond had intentionally tried to skip training.

"Sorry about that …." She said as the blond grinned and nodded.

"It's ok… I guess."

"Right," Kakashi said as he closed his book, "now that that's settled, we should head towards the training grounds; we have a lot of catching up to do. Oh, and don't think you will leave early, we will do overtime today," he told them with an eye smile as Sakura stiffened while turning to glare at the blond who began to inch away.

Sasuke sighed as he looked at the two, they acted so immaturely sometimes, it was mostly Naruto that acted like a kid, but even Sakura had her moments and it annoyed him. He turned around and started walking back to the training ground with Kakashi in tow. Seeing as the two were leaving, Sakura immediately forgot about the blond and ran after the object of her affection leaving Naruto to sigh in relief. He didn't stay back too long as he didn't want to invoke the girl's wrath again.

After walking for a few minutes Naruto realized that they weren't exactly going to the training grounds, he started wondering where they were going. The blond started looking around, it wasn't long and he realized that the path they took was leading them towards his favorite ramen stand. Just as he was about to ask why they were going this way, he noticed that they had already arrived at the ramen stand and that his sensei and teammates were entering it. The Jounin paused briefly and turned towards the blond giving him an eye smile.

"Well? Aren't you going to join us?" He asked as the blond blinked several times before starting to walk to the stand in daze, his mind still asking itself why they wanted to eat ramen all of a sudden.

"Naruto! So good to see you again!" The chef exclaimed as Naruto entered the stand. He looked around and saw that there was no one else here apart from his teammates who were sitting on the stools, a free spot between them.

"Take a seat," Kakashi said as he walked pass the blond and sat down to Sakura's right side. The blond nodded absent mindedly and took a seat in between his teammates.

"Kakashi-sensei…" The blond said as the Jounin turned towards him, "why are we here?" He asked curiously as the Jounin smiled and turned to order his food.

"To relax and get you to eat, you look like you haven't eaten in days," he said as he placed his order, "besides, after yesterday I thought you might want to loosen up a bit."

The blond nodded again as he turned towards Teuchi and ordered his usual dish. As the old man left to prepare their food, he turned towards Kakashi. "Sakura, Sasuke, don't you two have anything to share?" The Jounin asked as the blond raised an eyebrow.

He looked at Sasuke who just 'hn'ed' and turned his head around and then towards Sakura who looked to be deep in thought. He was about to ask what the Jounin meant when Sakura decided to speak.

"Naruto…" She said, "… after yesterday, I thought about some things and … I'm sorry for the way I treated you all this time."

"What do you mean?" the blond inquired as the girl turned towards him.

"What I mean is that… whatever you're going through, we're your teammates, and you can open up to us. We will listen and help you out, right Sasuke-kun?" She asked as she looked towards the raven haired boy.

"Hn… yes, we can't have you sulking in corners." he stated with indifference in his voice as the blond grinned.

"Well yeah, cause then I would take away your job." he said chuckling as the Uchiha's narrowed eyes.

"Look who's talking, the walking 'Kill me sign'."

"Touché," the blond replied as their food arrived, he looked at the raven haired boy with the corner of his eye and saw him grinning at his victory, inwardly the blond was happy to learn that his teammates would be there to support him if he had problems, but he knew that they wouldn't be able to help him in some regards.

He looked down at his food and silently sighed as him mind was playing tricks on him again. He felt the Jounin looking at him and decided to ignore his eyes this time and go for his senses like the angel told him. As he took a bite of the contents, he could feel the unmistakable flavor of ramen and smiled.

As the blond was eating, the raven haired Uchiha slightly turned to look at him. It had been bothering him for some time now, his teammate was acting differently than how he acted in the academy, the way he walked was different and the way he talked was starting to change a bit. He didn't seem to be that outgoing anymore and it didn't seem like he was sleeping anymore… or at least that's what he deducted after the boy showed up with black rims under his eyes, even today.

He started thinking back to the academy days, he used to be friends with Naruto before the massacre, but back then it was something different. Now, with the talk they had with Kakashi, he felt like he had done wrong to push the blond away back then.

"_Alright team, you might have noticed that Naruto isn't here. I don't know where he is but I do know this, something is wrong with him and since we are now a team I want you guys to act like one." _That was what the Jounin said, and when asked what he meant, _"talk with Naruto, get to know him more, talk with each other and get to know the other more. I'm sure that you two know little about your blond teammate, change that because you three will have to trust each other with your life from now on."_

There was something about Naruto that changed the night before the team placements; he knew that it happened sometime back then since in the morning he was still the same old idiot. And then the next day while he still acted like the blond idiot everyone knew. The way he walked was different, not to mention the way he acted all of a sudden. Then it happened at the first team meeting and when they took the test, that sword, it appeared out of nowhere from what he believed, there was no way the boy could hide a weapon under the lake. He turned to look away as the blond suddenly stopped eating and turned towards him, somehow the child knew that he was looking at him. Sasuke vowed to find out more about the blond and he knew just how to do it.

* * *

The blond sighed as he stood in the middle of a clearing; the team meeting had been interesting. They stood in the ramen shop for about an hour eating and chatting small things, getting to know each other. Who knew that Sasuke liked to garden? He chuckled as he remembered the boy's face; it was red as a tomato when he said that. He didn't learn too much about the Uchiha, only the things that he already knew like the fact that he liked to train, read books about Ninjutsu and stuff like that, though the gardening one was something new.

Sakura however, he learned quite a deal things. At one point he was thinking of a way to escape her. That never happened before, who knew that that girl liked to shop that much? She even started telling them when the right time to shop for things was. He didn't need to know that, nor what colors he was supposed to wear for each month. He sighed, that girl was a maniac when it came to shopping.

As for Kakashi? Well, he didn't learn anything, he stood quiet all the time, reading his book and sometimes nodding at a question. And when he was asked to talk about himself, he just vanished, just like that.

He shook his head as he closed his eyes and took a meditative position. Just like last night he was trying to meditate like the angel told him, clear his mind of all the unnecessary things. From what the being told him, if he were to meditate he would learn more about how to fight and he would learn new spells. That was something rather interesting, last night when he meditated he learned of a new way to fight with his sword. He didn't quite understand how the whole "meditate and you will learn" thing was, but as long as he learned how to fight, that was all that he needed know.

As he was meditating a blue aura started appearing around him, a gentle breeze picking up around his form. A very calmed looked was present on his face. The aura could be barely seen, it would take a highly trained ninja to see it. As he was meditating he suddenly felt a pang in the back of his head, but when he tried to open his eyes he found himself getting more and more tired, or that he was getting sucked into something. Before he knew it, he had lost consciousness, even though he was still sitting in a meditative position in the clearing.

He heard crying, his head snapped up and he looked around frantically. He was sure that it was a woman that he was hearing. Listening carefully he started running towards the sound, towards the crying. It wasn't long and he reached what looked like a room with a cage at the end. He didn't pay much attention to the cage, all he saw when he entered the room was a girl, sitting on the floor on the far end of the room, crying.

Cautiously he walked towards her, the sound of his footsteps echoed in the room as the girl gasped and turned her head towards him. Fear was evident in her eyes, and in the way her body was trembling. Naruto was fascinated by her beautiful red hair, her red lips and her angel like face. She was drawing him towards her, just by looking at her.

"Umm… are you alright?" He asked trying to use the right tone, to make her know that he didn't mean her any harm.

The girl began tearing up as she started crying again, "what's wrong?" He asked and it was then he noticed her… features. A red tail and a pair of fox ears were present on her, he blinked in surprised.

"I'm a monster!" She cried out, "he turned me into a monster!" She wailed in despair as she collapsed on the ground. The blond took sympathy in the girl as he walked closer to her.

"Who did this to you?" He asked as he kept walking towards the cage.

"A man…" She cried, "… and… and he said he has no more use for me… he's going to kill me now…" She cried as she turned to look at him, "please, I beg you, save me!" she shouted in fright as the blond's heart started racing. He had to save her, if she was telling the truth then that man would actually kill her.

Not wasting any time he ran towards the gate, with the intent on opening them and saving the girl. "Stop!" Someone ordered as the blond stopped in his tracks a few feet away from the cage, he turned his head around and his eyes rested on an angel, "do not let him fool you," he said sternly.

"What do you mean?" Naruto asked as he turned his head towards the cage.

It was then that it happened, it was so fast; he thought he would have a heart attack. The girl just appeared in front of the cages bars with her right hand extended towards him ready to grab him, her claws ready to tear him to shreds. A sick grin appeared on her face.

"**So close… if it wasn't for your friend… you would have been mine!"** She said in a deep male voice as eight more tails appeared behind her and she started changing in a large fox.

The blond looked up in fright; he was standing before the nine tailed fox, the Kyuubi. He backed away in fear as the fox lowered his head towards him and grinned.

"**What's the matter? Afraid?"** The demon laughed softly, **"is the little guardian afraid of the ninth demon?"** He continued to laugh, a soft chuckle until it grew into a loud and mocking laughter.

"Shut up!" The blond yelled in anger as the fox looked down at him.

"**Oh… and what will you do?"** He grinned devilishly, "**I might be stuck behind bars… but I can still… control your fears!"** He shouted as the world around the blond started changing. In a matter of seconds the entire sewer was replaced with the streets of Konoha.

Naruto looked around and saw the entire city burning, he could see the ninja fighting monsters and the undead; they were losing. He could see the civilians running away in fear and getting caught by demons and then ripped to shreds. Then he heard the Kyuubi laugh, his eyes appeared in the large demonic gate, the same gate he had in his nightmares.

"**Well boy…"** He heard the demon's voice, **"…how do you like… your nightmare?!"** he shouted as the ground shook and skeletons rose around him. He moved his hand towards his sword only to realize that it's not there. He looked up in fright as the skeletons started moving towards him.

"**What will you do? …"** The beast asked mockingly as the skeletons kept moving towards him. **"Will you run like a coward? Or die like a useless martyr?"** The fox asked as a man appeared on top of the gate, impaled, like in his nightmares.

"**Do you… recognize…"** The demon started as the gate suddenly started inching closer towards the blond, **"…yourself?!?"** Kyuubi shouted as the blond found himself impaled on top of the large gate. He could feel the pain move throughout his body, while feeling the warm dam feeling of his blood run over his skin.

"Aaahh!" The blond shouted in pain as the demon kept laughing. **"You are like the rest!" **He shouted with glee evident in his voice, **"weak, pathetic! … And powerless!" **His laughter continued to echo around him as the boy started trying to pull himself from the pike, or stone, or whatever was impaled in him.

"**It's useless!" **The demon shouted, **"Your soul…is mine for the taking!"** He appeared in front of the blond with his mouth open, ready to devour him.

The blond shouted and felt someone slap him. He opened his eyes and found himself in the clearing from before; he was panting and sweating heavily.

"Are you alright?" He heard someone ask, a girl judging by the soft voice. He turned to his left and saw a beautiful girl with hair reaching down to her chest; she was wearing plain civilian clothes. He looked up at her face, her eyes somewhat reminded him of Sasuke's, in color, her eyes held joy but he could still see something hidden behind all that joy.

"Yeah, I'm fine…" The blond said as the girl blinked at him.

"You sure? It's not every day I see someone sitting in the middle of the forest, apparently sleeping or something, and then yelling like a madman or like someone was skinning you alive." She said with a deadpanned expression on her face as the blond chuckled silently.

"Yeah… I'm a strange one," he said with a small blush on his face making the girl giggle.

"Yes you are, need help standing up?" She asked offering him her hand. The blond smiled and nodded as he took her hand and stood up.

"So what were you doing here?" The boy asked with a small smile on his face.

"I was walking, like I do every day," she replied; the blond couldn't trace any hint of lie in her voice; he nodded to himself as he let his guard down.

"Walking eh? Kinda boring," he said with a shrug as the girl shook her head.

"It helps, clears your mind, it's refreshing…" She said, "… you a ninja?"

The blond nodded as the girl smiled, "but why do you wear those bright clothes then? I thought you needed to be concealed," she asked blinking.

Naruto frowned a bit; everyone asked him the same question all the time. "I know, but it was the only thing I could afford," he told her, he didn't know why exactly but he felt relaxed near the girl and he felt like he could talk to her and trust her. Just as he was about to ask her something the girl looked up at the sky and frowned.

"I'd better get going, it's getting late," she said as she turned around and started running away. The blond nodded absent mindedly when he remembered that he didn't ask her for her name.

"Hey!" The blond shouted trying to get her attention, "what's your name?" He asked, but it seemed like she didn't hear as she kept on running until she vanished behind some trees.

The blond sighed as he looked around; he brought his hand up to his face and looked at it. The meeting with Kyuubi was not what he had expected, even though the fox was behind the seal it could somehow control his mind or something like that. He wasn't sure what the being had done to him, but everything he had experienced was so real. He took a deep breath to calm down and then looked around, it was better if he went home to try and get some rest.

As the blond started walking away Sasuke jumped down from the tree he was hiding, he looked at the retreating blond wondering if he should follow him or not. He decided however that it would be best not to follow him, after what he had witnessed something clearly was wrong with him. What exactly he didn't know, but he was sure he would find out what. He turned around and started making his way home; it would be bad if someone saw him here.

* * *

"It's happening." A voice echoed in the Sandaime's office, the old man looked up from his papers and towards the origin of the sound. The angel that had visited him just two days ago was there.

"They are here?" The old man asked his voice filled with anxiousness and a bit of fear. He did feel a bit of fear, he would fight the unknown, or his worst nightmares, anyone would be afraid.

"No, not here." The angel replied as he looked out the window, the old man sighed in relief; he wasn't ready to go to battle even though he had made a promise to protect Naruto until he was ready, "they're somewhere out there; I felt it when a portal opened."

"Today…" The Sandaime started as the angel turned towards him and cut him off.

"I know the graves… the boy risked a lot going down there, especially when I told him to turn and run if he came across certain signs…" The angel said with a bit of anger in his voice.

"The scorched ground, I presume?" Sarutobi stated as the angel nodded and turned to look out the window once more.

"What exactly …" the Hokage started only for the door to be opened by his secretary. He looked at the woman and then towards the angel, or at least the spot where he should have been.

"Hokage-sama, pardon the interruption, but Hyuuga Hiashi is here to speak with you." She said as the old man turned towards her and nodded letting her know that she could send the man in.

The secretary took a few steps back and seemed to talk to someone, she then opened the door and the Hyuuga head stepped in. He bowed respectfully to the Hokage who nodded and told him to take a seat in front of him. The man wasted no time in walking to the chair in front of the Hokage's desk.

"So, what brings you here Hiashi?" the Sandaime asked with a smile.

The man kept a passive face as he started talking. "I would like to talk about Uzumaki Naruto." He said as the Hokage raised an eyebrow wondering why Hiashi wanted to speak about the boy, usually he only spoke about him if said boy had done something wrong, or when he was subject to one of his pranks them. He hoped it wasn't related to some kind of prank.

"What do you wish to talk about?" The Sandaime asked as he leaned in his chair and brought his hands up under his chin.

"Well… the boy has been acting strange for the past days, it seems like he's planning something," he said seriously, to Sarutobi it seemed like the man was suspecting Naruto of doing something big, and very soon.

"And that would be?" He asked.

"Well… for starters, this morning I saw him enter the graveyard and then walk around some graves that were dug up. It makes me wonder what he was doing there," Hiashi replied as the Sandaime nodded, it was obvious that someone from a clan might see him; it was good that it was Hiashi and not someone from the council or the advisors. Who knows what might have happened then.

The Sandaime was about to reply when he felt something strange, he didn't know why he didn't realize it until now but he couldn't feel Hiashi's chakra. Either the man was masking it or he wasn't Hiashi. But then again there wasn't a civilian that could use a Henge or something.

"Lord Hokage?" The Hyuuga inquired, "is there something wrong?"

Sarutobi shook his head. "No, I was just wondering why you were masking your chakra," he said as he looked up at the man and saw the puzzled look on his face.

"Chakra?" He asked and just as the Hokage was about to ask another question the angel appeared in the room behind Hiashi with a pole arm in his hand. The angel stabbed the Hyuuga through the chair with his weapon and lifted him up towards the ceiling.

"What are you doing!?" The Hokage shouted as he jumped up on his feet. The angel slammed the Hyuuga on the ground and pulled his pole arm out of the body and then cut Hiashi in half with it. The door then burst open and two ninja and the secretary rushed in. The angel turned towards them and raised his hand as all three of them suddenly collapsed on the ground.

"What… what is the meaning of this?" Sarutobi shouted in anger as he looked towards the angel who turned towards him.

"The three are just unconscious, had to erase their memory about me…" he then looked down at the Hyuuga's corpse. "This one had to die…" He said as the Hokage grit his teeth in anger. "Watch…" The angel said pointing towards the dead body.

The old man looked down and before his eyes the Hyuuga's body started changing until all that was left lying on the floor was a black thing. It was tall as an adult man, but its entire body was pitch black. It had tentacles instead of arms or hands, its face looked like a mixture between a squid and a human, the only thing that looked human was its body and legs.

"This is a shadow, a demon serving under the second general of Hell," the angel said as he impaled the body with his pole arm, "weak alone, almost impossible to kill when in a group of his … resurrections."

"What… resurrections? Where is Hiashi? What…" The Sandaime couldn't believe what he was seeing in front of him, the dead body of a demon that posed as Hiashi, the head of the Hyuuga clan.

"Shadows cannot be seen by humans as long as they are alive, if a Shadow walks into your shadow then it can assume your form, shape-shift. However, it's vulnerable when shape-shifted, easy pickings, if you can find them. As for resurrections… you just found your grave robber."

Sarutobi's eyes widened as he looked towards the angel, who continued to speak.

"Shadows are mostly used as recons and body retrievers; usually they have a master with them all the time. I can't sense its master so it must have been sent here on a covert mission," the angel said as his hand blazed in a display of scorching flames. He threw a large white fireball towards the corpse, incinerating it in a few seconds and leaving only the pole arm that was stuck in the ground and some ashes.

"Its master is a necromancer, brings the dead back to life, but only the body. They can't manipulate the soul. The Shadow retrieves the bodies that the necromancer desires. Since it's so hard to spot, it's the best options that they have," the angel stated as he picked his pole arm up and turned towards the Hokage.

"My friend… war is about to begin…" He said with a serious voice as his wings started blazing with a white flame, "but this time…we … will not lose to them." he said as he vanished in a spiral of roaring fire.

* * *

**A/N: Sorry for the long wait, this was the hardest chapter to write for me, for some strange reason. This time I would like to not only thank Silhouette of a Life but King of the Frozen Tundra as well for helping me with this. I had … quite a lot of errors, heh. So, I bow before my two helpers and thank them deeply, I will repay you somehow, I always repay those that help me. **


	4. Preparations for War

**A/N: I was on vacation, I'm sorry for the lack of update. Also, you can consider this a sort of … filler, I wanted to make the transition between the previous chapter and the next one.**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto**

**The Archangel – Chapter 4: Preparations for War**

Naruto sighed as he continued meditating in the same spot in the woods. Several weeks had passed since he had first met Kyuubi. And to say the least; things hadn't improved since then, during the night the fox continued to show him who was in control. He continued to show him the same nightmares, occasionally changing them with something new or just changing the setting.

The worst moment was when he was face to face with the demon for the second time in his life. Again, during a nightmare, the demon threatened to make him suffer and feel pain and to prove his point, he had bitten his arm off. He had felt the pain, indescribable pain. During that nightmare he had ran like no tomorrow, trying to get away from the fox, his mind continued to tell him that if the fox devoured him, he would die, and if he died, then all hell would break loose.

There were moments when the nightmares were cut short by the same angel that stopped him when he first encountered Kyuubi. He was sure it wasn't the angel he had met in the temple during the fake C-rank mission, but he still didn't know who he or what his purpose was.

Surely the angel was looking for something more than just saving his ass every time the Kyuubi took control of his dreams. But whenever he tried to speak with the angel, tried to find out his name or what he was doing in his mindscape, he wouldn't get any answer. The angel would vanish right after he would save Naruto.

It was annoying but he couldn't do anything to change things. He had tried to find the angel he met in the temple, but no matter where he looked he just couldn't find him. Maybe he didn't want to be found or maybe he was waiting for the right time to show up.

The boy sighed as his stomach rumbled, he hadn't eaten too much in the past days, the fox was starting to fool his sense of taste now and whenever he ate ramen or anything else he thought he was eating beetles, worms or some other insects. Not that he knew how any of those tasted since he had never tried any of them but what he felt was so real that he had puked the first time he felt it. It was like there actually was a worm inside his mouth, crawling about. He didn't like that; he didn't want to experience that again. And because of all that he hadn't eaten in several days and he was now paying the price. He could barely concentrate on what he was doing.

However, not everything was bad. The team meetings were good the first time, they did several light spars and tactics, before they took a lot of D-ranked missions. That was when team meetings started to suck, D-rank missions were like doing chores, and yes he understood that it was supposed to build the team into one working unit. But that was just pushing it, how many times were they going to chase after that damn cat until they realize that they had enough of the scratches and the bites? Naruto after a few hunts started thinking that the cat was a demon in disguise. He winced as he moved his hand on his right cheek; the cat scratched him there earlier today. He sighed in annoyance; he never imagined that being a ninja would be this annoying or boring.

The only thing that he liked was the fact that he had made a new friend, the girl he met a few weeks ago in the spot he currently was. She seemed to come here regularly, usually an hour or so later after he arrived. It was refreshing to have her around. Her presence seemed to calm him, he liked that a lot. She was also a good listener and always gave him advice, he was happy to have met her. He opened his eyes and turned to look behind him as he felt someone place a hand on his shoulder. He smiled as his eyes landed on the girl he was thinking about.

"Evening, Satsuki-chan," the blonde said with a smile on his face, as the girl gave a light smile and sat down beside him.

"You seemed to be in deep thought," the girl said as the blonde chuckled slightly, he usually got lost in his thoughts when he was here. The forest was a peaceful place; it was the only place he could think clearly.

"I haven't seen you for five days; I was beginning to think you didn't want to talk to me again," the blonde said with a low voice, the girl caught the bit of sadness in his voice and felt a pang of guilt in her chest, she knew he had few friends and she knew he had no family. Everyone in the village despised him and didn't want to do anything with him.

"Yeah… I'm sorry about that; I had some problems back home." She said with a faint smile as the blonde turned towards her with his own smile and said it was nothing. "What happened to your cheek?" She then asked.

The blonde brought his hand up to his scratched cheek and gave a faint frown.

"Had to catch a damn cat… stupid D-rank missions," he grumbled as the girl giggled slightly. "Neh…" he said while turning towards her. "Could you help me with something?" He asked as Satsuki titled her head to the side in confusion.

"Depends on what you want me to help with," she replied as the blond took a deep breath.

"Well… you know how I told you about my teammates' right?" He asked as she nodded. "Well, I was wondering if you could help me make Sakura-chan see me as more than just a friend or teammate." He said with a small blush on his cheeks as he looked away, even though there were more pressing matters to attend to, he still wanted to continue trying his luck. He didn't want to die without experiencing love.

Satsuki however sighed in annoyance; she somehow knew that Naruto was going to ask for something like this. Just because she was girl it didn't mean that she knew how other girls thought or how others would react to certain proposals.

Her mind drifted to her childhood as she suddenly felt a pang in her heart, just for a second it hurt her just as much as it hurt her when her family died. She looked up at the blonde who was waiting patiently for an answer; she gave him a soft, yet regretful smile and shook her head.

She could see his mood changing.

"I'm sorry Naruto, but I can't help you with this…" she said softly as the blonde nodded slowly "You need to understand that… you shouldn't go chasing for a girl that doesn't want to be with you." She said as the blonde looked up and raised an eyebrow, he never mentioned to her how many times he was rejected or when he started chasing after Sakura.

"What do you mean?" He asked skeptically, she realized she made a small mistake and she had to correct it, she worked hard until now to get the answers she needed, she didn't want to blow her cover. Especially knowing that in front of her stood the most unpredictable person ever, he could go around shouting to everyone what he had just found out and that was a bad thing, a very bad thing.

"Whenever we meet I somehow always end up listening how you complain about that Sasuke person taking your beloved Sakura-chan." She said as she crossed her arms on her chest. The blond grinned meekly as he rubbed the back of his head; that was true, he did always talk about his team, but it was mostly due to the fact that he didn't have anyone else to talk to. "Now from all that I could get the picture of where you are going with it." She finished with a huff.

"Well… yeah, but can you blame me for trying?" He asked as the girl shook her head, he was right about that, she couldn't blame him for trying to have someone to love him. Yet, she could blame him for trying with only one girl; it was like the whole world resolved only around that pink haired banshee.

"However, the world is not only limited to her." She said with a small glare as the blonde shrugged making Satsuki's eyebrows twitch.

"Anyways…" the blond said, deciding to change the subject. "My team has a C-rank mission tomorrow." He told her with a big smile on his face, whenever talking to her he felt like he was talking to a member of his family, which usually never happened with anyone else. It was different with her, he couldn't quite explain it. It also felt like he had met her before, but where, he just couldn't place it.

"Oh? I'm happy for you," she replied. Her mind drifted to her task at hand however, she still hadn't found out what she wanted to know from the blonde and whenever she asked he would either ignore the questions or would say that he can't talk about it. "So what type of mission is it?" She asked trying to strike some idle conversation before going for her goal.

"Well, it's just some escort mission; have to watch over a drunk lunatic," he grumbled, he didn't seem all that pleased about the mission. The only thing that pleased him was because it was a C-ranked mission and that would mean he would leave the village for a short time. He had never left the village before from what he had told her and for him this was surely refreshing.

"It can't be all that bad," she said as the boy shrugged.

"Maybe, though I will get to fight ninja's or bandits." He said with pride, he really wanted to test his skills on something else apart from chasing the cat or fighting his sensei or Sasuke.

"So you will use your sword on this mission of yours?" She asked as she leaned forward a bit and looked into his eyes.

The boy brought his hand up to his chin and scratched it in deep thought. "Yeah, I guess I might do that. I need to see how good I am at Kenjutsu."

"Ne, did you learn Kenjutsu by yourself?" She asked curiously.

The blonde nodded and then shook his head. "Yes and no, I mean, when I picked up the sword it just felt natural to me, like I already knew how to use it." He told the girl while looking towards her.

She seemed to be in deep thought, and then she looked up and moved closer to him making the blonde's heart skip a beat.

"So… it's like an enchanted sword?" She asked, reminding him of a curious child.

"Well… I guess…" He replied, not exactly knowing what to tell her.

"Where'd yah get it?" She asked, as the blonde raised an eyebrow, why was she so interested in the sword all of a sudden?

"You know I can't tell you," he replied as she frowned before pushing him towards the ground and moved above him.

"Oh come on… I won't tell," she said, staring into Naruto's eyes.

The blonde looked back at her, somewhat surprised of her actions, but he didn't raise his guard. He could tell she wasn't one of them. Looking into her eyes he however couldn't bring himself to say something, he had never been this close with a girl before and certainly not in a position like this.

He had seen other children act like this, siblings, or not. But he never had this kind of contact before, he didn't know what to do or say.

Satsuki waited for him to reply but he didn't, she frowned a bit and then kept looking at his blue eyes. Memories of her childhood started to resurface once more; she remembered when she first met him, in the strangest conditions of them all. If her brother hadn't showed up she would have left with him on that day, even though her father would have brought her back later. She bit her lower lip as her heart started beating faster, she didn't know for what reason, but it hurt her.

The blond raised an eyebrow as he saw the pain in her eyes, whatever she was thinking about it was hurting her. He saw a tear drop for her eyes and felt it fall on his cheek.

"Satsuki-chan, what's wrong?" He asked as the girl gasped and moved away from him like she had been in some sort of trance until now. She moved her hand to her eyes as she realized that her emotions were surfacing and taking the best of her.

She looked at the blond who stood up in a sitting position and moved towards her with his hand extended, a look of worry in his eyes. She moved her hands up to her eyes and stood up on her feet and ran away ignoring the blond that was shouting her name.

Naruto stood rooted in place not understanding what just happened, was it because of him that she started crying? Did he do something to offend her? He didn't know.

He looked in the direction the girl ran wondering if she was alright, wondering if he should run after her and see if she is alright. He looked away and started wondering again, where had he met her before? It took him two days to realize that her face was familiar, he was sure she wasn't a relative of Sasuke's since they were all dead, yet somewhere deep down, he knew he had met her before, but he couldn't figure out where.

Suddenly guilt washed over him as he thought that maybe that reason offended her or hurt her, the fact that they must have met in the past and that he had forgotten about her. But no matter how hard he tried to think, he just couldn't remember meeting a girl named Satsuki before.

* * *

Satsuki sighed as she closed the door behind her, she was back at home. She brought her hands up to her face and felt the tears, she didn't know what made her emotions come out like that and she didn't know why she was remembering her childhood like that all of a sudden. And then running from Naruto, why was she acting like this all of a sudden?

She took off her shoes and started walking down the hallway, she stopped at the kitchen door and looked inside the empty kitchen, she barely used it as the place brought back many memories she wished to forget. It was one of the reasons she became cold and locked away in her own little world, one of the reasons she pushed people away. In her mind, she always considered the possibility he might return and kill those precious to her, so instead of having precious people to lose, she might as well have no one and in return lose nothing.

But now, with Naruto, she felt different: she wanted to open up to people, she wanted to talk to people, she wanted to change her lifestyle. But she was still afraid to do so.

Sighing, the brunette turned around and started walking up some stairs, towards her room. After her father had died, she redecorated her room. No one entered her house so she wasn't afraid to add to her room things to make her know who she really was. As she reached her room, she opened the door and stepped inside.

Unlike the rest of the house which had the same gray and black pattern, her room's walls were white, two pictures with her mother were present on the wall, a picture with her aunt was on the nightstand and somewhere, under a lot of clothes was a picture of her brother. She wanted to destroy it so much, yet she couldn't bring herself to do so. She walked over to her bed and let her body drop on it, she sighed as she pulled her pillow close to her and closed her eyes trying to control her emotions.

There was something completely different about Naruto, when she was near him she felt at peace, she felt tranquil. She couldn't exactly explain it, but she felt wonderful and she didn't want that feeling to ever vanish. Yet, the downside was that it brought out all her emotions, all of them at the same time and it was overwhelming.

She sniffed as she pulled her pillow closer to her, she wanted someone to come and comfort her yet she knew that no one would come. She closed her eyes hoping to fall asleep and forget the pain she was feeling, she got what she wished for.

* * *

"You bastard!" The blonde shouted as he fought against the restraints, the fox before him grinned evilly as it moved closer to him.

"**Oh, what's wrong? I'm just getting started."** The being said as he started shape shifting, in a matter of seconds the large fox was replaced with Satsuki herself, the only difference was that she was naked. The blond grit his teeth and closed his eyes, or at least tried, he found that he couldn't, his eyes were locked on her body as she moved closer to him.

"**It's so fun to torment your mind… but I have to admit, you impress me with your will to not break."** She said with the fox's voice as she stopped right in front of him, her eyes then changed from the red vertical slits, to the black ones that Naruto knew all so well.

"Naruto… why won't you tell me your secrets?" She cooed as she moved her finger to his chest. She then placed her hands around his neck and pressed her body against his. "Please tell me…" she said, nibbling his earlobe, making it harder for the blonde to stay focused.

"If you don't tell me… **I might kill her."** The fox said as he appeared behind the girl who moved away from the blonde.

"What the fuck do you want?" The blonde shouted in anger as the fox, in a human form, grinned from the shadows.

"**I want you to give in to me, you know you will lose this war, there's no point in struggling."** The demon said as he extended his hand towards him in a sign that he wanted what he demanded.

"You can dream on, I'll die fighting!" He said; the fox made him realize days ago that he had to fight; he couldn't let the demons win this war.

"**Give in to me… and I will let you live with the woman you… cherish."** The fox said as he moved his fingers around the girl's neck, making her close her eyes and moan.

"You really think you can bribe me… think again!" He shouted as he tried once more to break his bindings. "I won't give you anything, I won't stop fighting, I'll kill every last one of you!" He shouted as he heard the fox sigh and then an evil smile appeared in the darkness.

"**Very well…"** the demon replied as three swords suddenly moved through the girl's body, piercing her. A look of horror appeared on her face as she started choking on her own blood. The blonde's eyes widened as he looked at her. She opened her mouth to speak but no words came out, though Naruto managed to read her lips. _'Why?'_ Was what she asked before her body collapsed on the ground in a pool of blood.

The boy started shaking in fright as his heart started processing what he had saw as something real, he heard the fox laughing at him but his eyes never left her body the entire time.

* * *

The blonde rose from his bed shouting, he looked around, he was in his room and it was morning already. He brought his hand over his heart and shed a few tears, even though it was only the fox's trickery, the look on her face…

He shook his head as he slapped himself several times. He slowly got out of his bed and looked at the watch; he had thirty minutes to get to the village gates for his mission. He took a deep breath and walked into the bathroom; he opened the light and stepped inside. Then yelped in fright when he looked in the mirror, the fox's eyes were there.

"_**Hope you enjoy… your trip…"**_ he heard the fox say and then laugher echoed all around him. He moved his hands to his ears and covered them, for some strange reason the laughter was hurting his head.

A few seconds later he slowly moved his hands away from his ears, he sighed in relief as the laughter had died down. He shook his head, no matter what the fox did he would not change his mind, he would fight. He got himself into this mess, he would fix the mess. He splashed some water over his face and then walked out of the bathroom, not even caring that he didn't dry his face.

He walked into the kitchen and sat down at the table; he picked up a fruit from the basket in front of him and started eating it while he thought about the mission. When the bridge builder requested for help there was something fishy about him. It was like he was hiding something, yet he was sure that the builder wasn't one of them, he would have felt it. He was sure about that at least.

Whatever the bridge builder was hiding, Naruto was prepared to face it with full force; he hadn't been training for the past months for nothing.

Standing up, the blonde walked to the door and then out of his apartment. He closed the door behind him and started walking towards the meeting spot. His mind then drifted towards the angel from his mindscape. He didn't manage to learn anything special about him, but what he managed to learn was that every sword style, every spell he learned when he was meditating was because of the angel.

From what he could understand, the angel was like his predecessor and if he was right, he was learning everything that his predecessor learned. How he learned all that just by meditating? He didn't know. But once he learned how to cast a spell he would start training in using it. When he learned a new move with his sword, he went to perfect it right away. All that he received from meditating was the basis of a spell or move; he had to perfect it himself.

His mind then drifted to his new friend, to Satsuki. He still wondered what he did to make her cry, was it the fact that he just didn't tell her about himself? His true self? He shook his head, he couldn't tell her that, if he did who knows what might have happened. This was a secret between him, the old man, and the trusted ANBU… or at least it will be like that until he either dies or things go extremely bad.

He looked up and smiled as he reached his destination, his teammates were already there but the Jounin and the bridge builder, Tazuna, were not.

"Morning guys," he said with a grin as Sakura looked up and gave a slight smile.

"Morning," She replied as the raven haired Uchiha nodded and grunted a 'good morning', barely audible, making the blonde give a slight chuckle.

The team waited for a few minutes for their sensei and client to arrive. After five minutes they saw both the client and the Jounin arriving at the same time. Over the past two weeks the Jounin started arriving on time to the meetings; rarely did he arrive late now. If he did arrive late it was because he was at a meeting with the Hokage or at the book store, shopping for his favorite book.

"I see you're all ready," the Jounin said with an eye smile as all three Genin nodded. "Well then, let's go." He instructed them as he walked out of the village with the client behind him.

The Genin wasted no time as they all followed after the Jounin. The blond grinned as he stepped out of the village, he would finally be able to see how the outside world was like.

* * *

Naruto's head snapped up as he just felt something. It wasn't like back in the graveyard, it was different, he just felt like something, somewhere opened. He had felt this a few months ago as well, then a few weeks ago but he couldn't trace it. He couldn't figure out what opened and where it did.

He looked up at his team, they had been walking through the forest for several hours now and nothing out of place happened. He sighed; this was rather boring in his opinion. He looked up and noticed something strange, a trail of blood leading from the road and into the forest. The Jounin noticed it as well as he ordered his team to stop. He was about to go and inspect when Naruto stopped him.

"Kakashi-sensei…" he said as the man turned towards him. "I'd be best if I went." He told him as the Jounin looked at him like he had gone insane. "What if this is just a plan to move you away from the client? If it's a trap…the client takes priority, besides, I'm not that easy to take down." He said with a grin as the Jounin was impressed with his logic.

Kakashi nodded as he stepped back and Naruto started walking into the forest. After a few minutes the stench of death invaded his nostrils. He arrived in a small clearing and took a step back in disgust; there were two bodies there that he couldn't identify, mutilated to the point where their chests were open and their organs missing. Bite marks were present all over the remains of their bodies. It was clear to Naruto that something, unnatural, had attacked them and devoured them. He was sure wolves couldn't do all this.

He looked around as he felt a strange aura, his eyes widened as he recognized it. The aura had a demonic feel to it, now he was sure that it wasn't wolves that killed the two men… or women, whatever they were. The blond kneeled down and placed his hand on the ground, he looked around expecting for whatever attacked the men to attack him as well. Yet nothing came, he felt movement in the bushes to his right, he threw a shuriken and a brown rabbit ran out of the bush. The blond stood up and turned around to leave. He looked at the place one last time before he left; there was nothing he could do here and nothing to find. He already knew what, or at least had an idea of what killed those two.

As he arrived back at his team he looked at the Jounin and shook his head. He walked over to him and whispered in his ear what he had found, Kakashi was shocked. He looked back at the bridge builder as if he suspected that he knew something about this, but the curious look he was giving him made him drop that idea. He then looked back at Naruto who shook his head, maybe it wasn't such a good idea to stay here too long or to go and check the bodies for himself.

Without a second thought he started leaving with his team and the builder behind them, he looked back towards the trail of blood one last time wondering what could have killed those people, Naruto didn't tell him what killed them, he suspected wolves but it was rather strange since wolves were not that aggressive, at least not towards humans. And they never attacked in broad daylight, the blood was fresh, he knew that for sure.

As they kept walking Naruto never took his hand off the swords hilt, when Sakura asked him why he was holding his hip he just told her it hurt him a bit from the walking. Of course she looked at him like he was crazy, who would believe that he would be tired of walking? After all he trained like a madman, he ran from Chuunin and Jounin when he pranked people. Still, she didn't press on much to the blonde's relief, he didn't want to go explaining that he had a sword hidden there under a Genjutsu and that he was under high alert from what he had seen back in the forest.

Sasuke however was intrigued, he was extremely curious as to what Naruto found back there. He wasn't very good at reading lips so he didn't really understand what the blond had whispered to their sensei. As the blond turned and looked at him his eyes widened for a second before he looked away in front of him and ignoring the stare Naruto was giving him. He placed his hand over his heart as he felt his heart beating faster.

When she woke up this morning her mind was still fixed on the blond and they way she would feel next to him. She needed to control herself; she couldn't get weak now of all times, she needed to be focused on the task at hand. She could think what was making her feel so different near Naruto later on.

The blonde blinked as he looked at Sasuke, he could have sworn he was looking at him just a moment ago. He shrugged; sometimes even his imagination was playing tricks on him. He sighed as he closed his eyes and brought his hands up and made a cross with his fingers. He started channeling energy and casted a small spell around him, the winds started whispering to him what was happening around him, this way he could tell if someone or something were going to ambush them.

After a few more hours of walking, Team Seven arrived at the end of the road; a boatman was waiting for them to take them across the sea to the Land of Waves. He ushered them in before he pushed the boat away from the land and gave life to the engine.

Naruto looked around but all he could see was a lot of fog and an outline of what appeared a massive structure somewhere towards the east. He scratched his chin as he thought he saw the outline of something else in the fog, more human and it was watching them. He saw the person, or whatever it was turn and jump away, if he was right they would have a fight soon enough, or that was just a scout for something else, something big.

He heard the engines stop and looked towards the boatman, he was now rowing.

"It's too dangerous to use the engine now," the man said. "Gato has patrols all around the island to make sure no one leaves or comes in unannounced."

As soon as they reached shore the team and the builder disembarked and started leaving the area. The boatman vanished in the fog after a few seconds of walking, the blond was a bit paranoid about the dense fog, he would be willing to bet that this wasn't natural. He looked up and saw his sensei tense, he must have felt something he was getting ready for whatever was to come.

"Get down!" The Jounin shouted and while the team and the builder ducked the blond instinctively unsheathed his sword and raised it in front of him. A loud clang was heard as a massive sword collided with the blonde's, pushing him back a few feet before moving back to where it came like it was a boomerang.

The blonde opened his eyes, his feet were trembling and his heart was racing. So much power was put into that sword, if he didn't have any kind of training he wouldn't have been able to withstand the shock.

Clapping resonated around them.

"I'm impressed you managed to block that and still stand," they heard someone say. "Yet… I see you shaking, so you're not as worthy as I thought you'd be."

"Who's there?" Sakura asked with fear in her voice as Kakashi stood up.

"Ah… the great copy-cat ninja… such an honor," The voice resonated once more as Kakashi lifted his headband showing the Sharingan. "Oh, the Sharingan? So early in the fight too… Again, I'm honored." The voice was heard only this time from behind the team.

As they turned to look they were shocked to see a ninja there holding a massive sword just a few inches away from their heads. His mouth was bandaged and he was wearing a slashed Kiri headband.

"Momochi Zabuza," Kakashi stated as the man grinned under his bandages.

"Too slow," he said as his sword moved towards the bridge builder with great speed. Another resonating clang was heard as the blond appeared in front of the ninja with his sword above his head, holding Zabuza's at bay.

"Impressive boy," The ninja commented, grinning as he saw the boy's legs shaking, he added more pressure and his eyes gleamed with humor as he saw the boy's legs shake even more.

"Still too weak," He said as he delivered a powerful kick in the blonde's ribs, making him gasp in pain and spit blood.

"Naruto!" Sakura shouted in fright as they saw him crash in a nearby tree, the sword falling next to his body.

"Your fight's with me," the Jounin said as he appeared in front of the missing-nin, kunai in his hands.

Naruto slowly opened his eyes; everything around him was fuzzy, to the point where he could barely see what was in front of him. He could hear fighting not far from where he was and the voice of his sensei echoed around him. Either his sensei was calling out for him, or said man was fighting with Zabuza since he could hear the missing-nin's taunts as well.

The blonde shook his head and moved his hand on his head. Gritting his teeth he raised his head and looked up, he could barely see some figures in the dense fog. Three were to his right, sitting and doing nothing from what he could see and then there were two to his left, which were constantly moving, he was sure now that it was his sensei and Zabuza fighting.

Upon closer inspection the blonde realized that there seemed to be more figures in the fog, as tall as Zabuza. Either the ninja made some clones of himself or those were his backup. He doubted they were friends since they would have attacked Kakashi by now.

The blonde shakily stood up and picked up his sword, he couldn't believe how weak he actually was. Or that ninja was incredibly strong for him to take on. Either way, he had been defeated with just one kick. He cringed as he felt the pain traveling through his body. Looking up he slowly made his way to the team, they looked towards him as they heard someone approaching.

"Kami! Naruto, are you alright?" Sakura asked with worry as she rushed to the blonde's side. Said blonde nodded slowly and looked towards the two ninja that were fighting.

He saw his sensei falling into a trap and then heard him order the team to retreat. He grit his teeth as he looked towards Sasuke.

"Hey…" he simply said as the Uchiha turned to look at him. "… Help me with something." He told him as the Uchiha got closer to listen to what the blond wanted to say.

A few seconds later the plan unfolded, Zabuza was caught by surprise as the Uchiha threw a windmill shuriken and underneath him was another. Just as he dodged the second he heard a puff of smoke and saw the blond appear behind him with his sword ready to strike. Without wasting any second Zabuza disabled the trap, freeing the Jounin and dodging the blonde's attack.

Naruto grinned as he dropped in the water; he swam up and looked around. His eyes widened as he saw a large wave moving towards him, clearly the Jounin tried another attack against Zabuza.

"Well… shit…" he mumbled, he was already pushing it. As the wave swallowed him he hit another tree and coughed. Water moved through his open mouth as he felt like drowning. Everything went black around him once more; one thought passed through his mind as fell unconscious.

"_I'm weak…"_

* * *

"Ugh…" the blond groaned as he moved his hand over his head, he slowly opened his eyes and found himself staring at a ceiling. He stood watching the ceiling for several minutes, thinking of what happened a few hours ago…

"I see you're up." He heard his sensei talk to him; he looked around and saw him laying in a futon next to him, reading his orange book. The Jounin raised his hand at him and gave an eye-smile. "Yo!"

"Sensei…?" The blond asked. "What happened?"

The man scratched his chin for a second before replying. "Well… you were caught in the jutsu I used and blacked out, we managed to defeat Zabuza and then a hunter-nin came and took his body, and from what I understand, Tazuna was forced to carry you back to his place."

"Kakashi…?" The blonde asked. "Why didn't you carry me?" He asked with a frown, why did he let the client do the work?

"Well…" the man started as he scratched the back of his head sheepishly. "I also blacked out after the fight."

The blonde nodded as he turned to look at the ceiling again, he then raised an eyebrow as he remembered something.

"Sensei…" he started as the man turned towards him. "… You said a Hunter-nin came and took Zabuza… was it the head?" He asked.

Kakashi blinked for a second before closing his book and sighing. "Well then… looks like Zabuza is still alive… the Hunter-nin took his body without damaging it in any shape or form."

Just then the door opened and the rest of Team Seven walked in. Sakura smiled in relief as she saw both her sensei and Naruto awake and fine, Sasuke looked at the two and 'hned' before leaning on the wall and crossing his arms over his chest.

"How are you feeling sensei?" The girl asked as the Jounin gave an eye smile.

"I'm fine, but we need to start training," he said as the team looked towards him with interest. "Zabuza is still alive; we need some training if we hope to defeat him." He told them with a serious tone.

"What…?" Sakura asked with surprise and worry in her voice. "But we saw him die, that Hunter-nin killed him with those needles," she said as Sasuke nodded.

"Yes… that's what we saw, but Hunter-nins don't take the body, they only take the head, while burning the body on the spot," He told the team as Sakura visibly paled.

"So… he's still alive? Will he come back?" She asked shakily.

"Yes, but with the wounds we gave him, it'll be a while… and we'll use that time to train," he told her with a reassuring smile.

Just then the door opened once more and Tazuna walked in with a woman behind him. The man gave an amused grin as he looked at Naruto and Kakashi.

"Glad to see you're up," he said as the woman gave her own smile. "Allow me to introduce you to my daughter, Tsunami."

"It's a pleasure to meet you," she said with a small bow as the Jounin smiled.

"Indeed," he said as the blonde gave a small bow as well before introducing himself.

"Would you like to eat something?" She asked as the blond eagerly nodded and the Jounin shrugged.

"Sure, we need all the strength we can get," he said. Sasuke walked forward and handed his sensei a pair of crutches, the man smiled and thanked the Uchiha as he slowly got on his feet.

"Alright then, let's go."

* * *

Naruto stood looking at the tree in front of him, he was panting heavily and his arms were shaking. He could barely hold his sword. The trees were covered in numerous slashes as the blond used it for training. He should have been with his team right about now, but he had completed the tree walking exercise with no effort and Kakashi told him that he could either train in what he wants or continue his chakra exercise. He chose the first; he could manipulate his chakra just right for the moment.

He needed to train and get stronger; the fight with Zabuza showed him just how weak he was. That demon he had killed back in Konoha, it might have been just pure luck after all, or maybe it was a very weak demon. Whatever the case, he knew that he needed to train more and more.

Naruto took a deep breath and sheathed his sword; he then raised his hands up in a seal and created ten shadow clones.

"Alright, one of you will fight me; the rest of you will start doing exercises; push-ups and the like," He stated as they saluted and started doing as they were told.

The blonde looked towards the clone that was supposed to fight him. "I will only block, you will hit with all you got." He ordered as the clone nodded and charged forward delivering kicks and punches like there was no tomorrow.

Naruto kept blocking every attack; from time to time the clone would score a hit making the blond drop on his knees or take a few steps back in pain. He didn't know why he was this weak, to him it seemed like he was getting weaker and weaker.

"Gah!" The blonde shouted as his clone delivered a powerful kick in his abdomen making the blond crash on the ground. He coughed several times before standing back up. "Again!" He growled as the clone charged once more, unleashing a barrage of punches and kicks which Naruto started blocking and dodging.

He was caught off guard as the clone suddenly swept his legs and delivered a kick in his stomach as he was still in mid-air. The blond gasped in pain as he crashed on the ground in full force. He started groaning in pain as he looked towards the clone. "Don't… stop…" he rasped out as he bit his lip and shakily rose to his feet.

"But boss… you're at your limit," the clone stated as the blond glared at it.

"When I tell you not to stop, you don't stop!" He shouted as the clone nodded solemnly and charged again.

Up in the trees Kakashi watched over the blonde, Naruto had been training all day long and he was still going at it. He shook his head as he turned around and left, he hoped the blonde would realize what made him weak and not continue his futile attempts to become stronger when he couldn't.

His wish did not come to fruition as the blonde kept training for three days without even retuning home. In the second day the Jounin had sent Sasuke to retrieve Naruto, however, when the raven haired Uchiha arrived in the spot where Naruto was training he saw him talking to a girl. He stood in the shadows looking at them and trying to figure out what they were talking, but he was no expert in lip reading so he had no idea.

As the girl got up and left the Uchiha decided to leave his hiding spot, he walked pass the girl and looked at her with the corner of her eyes. Satsuki felt a pang in her heart as she looked at the girl that just past by her and then at Naruto, she shook her head and walked towards the blonde.

"Naruto," the Uchiha said calmly. "Kakashi-sensei said to bring you back, you had enough training."

The blonde looked at his teammate and shook his head. "No can do… I still need to train." He said as he made ten clones again and ordered one to attack him.

Sasuke watched in mild interest as the blonde was blocking every attack the clone was making, that was until the clone managed to deliver a punch to the blonde's chin making said blonde fall on his back and if that wasn't enough, the clone attacked again while the blond was laying on the ground. It delivered a punch in the blonde's chest making him gasp for air, then the clone grabbed the by the legs and hurled him in a nearby tree making him gasp again.

Having enough, Sasuke pulled out a shuriken and hurled it at the clone that was about to attack again. The clone vanished in a puff of smoke as the raven haired boy walked towards the blonde and grabbed him by the collar and looked at him dead in the eyes.

"Are you insane?" He shouted; something which was out of the ordinary for the Uchiha. "What do you think you're doing?"

"Training," the blonde said with a weak smile, blood seeping from the corner of his lips.

Sasuke fumed as he slapped the blonde. "You idiot, and where will all this get you?"

"It'll make me stronger," the blonde replied with narrowed eyes. "I'm weak, you saw how Zabuza mopped the floor with me; I can't be that weak again!" He growled out as the raven-haired boy dropped his teammate and took a few steps back.

"And getting punched around will make you stronger?" He asked as the blonde stood up and replied.

"No, but it will help me achieve my goal of blocking any attack." He said as the Uchiha took a step back and then kicked the blond in the ribs making him crash into another tree.

He slowly walked towards the blond and watched him shakily get back on his feet. The blond grinned as he got into a fighting position and waited for the Uchiha to attack again. Sasuke wasted no time in charging forward and delivering punches and kicks, he was impressed with the blonde; he was able to block almost every attack. But he saw what his problem was and knew that if he told him he wouldn't listen, Naruto was always stubborn.

At the end of the day Sasuke returned to Tazuna's house, empty handed. Naruto still didn't want to return which made Kakashi angry, the blond was pushing himself too much and if that went on he wouldn't be able to fight when the time came.

So on the third day Kakashi decided to bring Naruto back and it was a good thing he did so. As the Jounin arrived in the clearing he was shocked to see the blonde, bleeding intensely and yet still fighting a clone of his with a sword. The blonde had bangs under his eyes and looked like he had seen better days.

Just as the clone was about to slash the blonde, Kakashi appeared near it and grabbed the weapon, he then punched the clone making it vanish and turned towards the blonde who looked ready to protest.

The Jounin decided to speak before the blond would start his rant. "Naruto, it's enough, you've been training for three days…constantly. Its time you rest." He ordered sternly.

"I still need to train sensei, I'm weak; Zabuza was able to defeat me with just one kick." He protested as the Jounin nodded.

"Yes, and you know what the problem is?" He asked as the teen remained quiet. "It's not the lack of training, but the lack of rest."

"Huh?" The blonde asked dumbly.

"When was the last time you slept?" He asked seriously as the shinobi began to ponder.

"I think… two days before we left Konoha," he replied as the Jounin looked at him incredulously. No one would, no, could be standing up right now, but then again, maybe the fox had something to do with his resilience.

Without warning the Jounin grabbed Naruto and slung him over his shoulder.

"Hey, what are you doing?" The blonde shouted in outrage as the Jounin started jumping from tree to tree, heading to Tazuna's place.

"You will rest today and tomorrow," he ordered.

"I need to train!" The boy shouted. "I can't fight anyone if I'm weak!"

"You aren't weak because of lack of training!" The Jounin snapped as the blonde 'eeped'. "You're weak due to the lack of rest!" Kakashi shouted in anger as he kept moving back to the bridge builder's house. "If I didn't sleep for that long, I would have died against Zabuza."

Naruto remained quiet as he heard that, if that was true, then he lost because of exhaustion. He couldn't actually believe that, it was impossible and yet it seemed like it was true. He looked up as they arrived at Tazuna's place; the Jounin opened the door and stepped inside.

"Ah, Hatake-san," Tsunami said as she looked at the Jounin. "And Naruto-kun…" she frowned as she saw the bags under the boy's eyes, before noticing the various cuts and bruises, "you really need some rest."

Naruto was about to protest once more when Kakashi decided to speak. "I already told him, and he'll be resting today and tomorrow." He said with an eye smile as the woman nodded happily.

The Jounin dragged the blonde up to the room he shared with Sasuke and dropped him on the bed.

"Sleep," he ordered like the blonde was a dog.

"Fine!" The boy grumbled as he lay down and closed his eyes, sighing as he felt himself succumbing to darkness.

"_**Hahaha…"**_ the fox's laughter echoed in the blonde's head. _**"You think I'll let you rest? You think I'll let you sleep? Come into my domain, the fun is about to start!"**_

"_Don't think so…"_ another voice said, silencing the fox. _"This time… you will not be able to harm him… sleep Uzumaki, you will need to be fully rested for what will come,"_ the voice said as a smile appeared on the blonde's face. _"And don't worry… you aren't fighting alone."_

* * *

Somewhere far away, in a land never seen or heard of - filled with dangerous creatures and a flora that could kill anyone - a large camp could be seen. Inside the encampment, numerous men and women were present. The majority of them were dressed in armor; some were guarding the entrances of the camp, while others trained.

Knights could be seen fighting against each other with their blades; archers could be seen practicing in the archery range. Others were sitting around campfires in silence, most probably contemplating on the war that was to come; others were kneeling at the steps of a large chapel, an angel present at the top of the stairs giving his blessing to the soldiers, preparing them for the war.

Blacksmiths were working on their forges, preparing new weapons, building more armor. Angels could be seen in some forges casting spells on newly made weapons, making them stronger, faster, and lighter for the soldiers.

Stable masters tended to the horses as the riders sharpened their swords. The thunders roared in the night sky as the camp's inhabitants looked towards the blood red moon. The time had come; war, revenge, and salvation. They were ready to fight for everything and everyone, all they needed was the command, all they needed was their leader… all they needed was the Guardian's call.

* * *

**A/N: Bleh… the chapter's sucky; I think I'm losing my touch… again…**

**Edit (20.08.2009): beta thanks go to both King of the Frozen Tundra and Silhouette of a Lifes**


	5. Path paved in Blood II

**The Archangel – Path paved in Blood (II)**

"_I killed them..." an angel said as he looked towards the blood filled battlefield. The corpses of demons and humans alike were scattered everywhere. He turned his head to the side and gazed upon the body of a dead angel. "…I killed them all…" he whispered as feathers started falling from his wings, the wind intensified, lifting the fallen feathers in the air and blowing them away. _

_Movement could be heard as three more angels appeared from the forest, they gasped as they saw the massacre before them. They had arrived too late, everyone was dead…everyone but the angel before them._

"_Ninth!" shouted one of them. "What happened here?" _

_There was no answer; the angel kept staring at the body of his deceased brethren. The angel shouted once more, demanding to know what happened, all that they received in the end was a malicious laughter from the 'ninth'._

_Their eyes widened as they saw the feathers falling from his wings, the few that would not fall were changing color. Taking out their weapons they wasted no time in attacking the laughing angel, said being turned towards them, his demon-like eyes piercing into their souls, stopping one dead in his tracks. _

"_I … killed them… I killed them all…" he whispered with glee as the blackened clouds blocked the sun and thunder echoed throughout the valley, enshrouding the shouts of pain and agony._

"Naruto!" shouted Tsunami as the boy shook his head and blinked. He was staring off into space for the third time and his food was getting cold. The blond looked at the woman meekly and apologized. She shook her head and smiled at him.

Two days had passed since Kakashi brought the boy back from his constant training, the blond had slept all this time but even after he woke up he didn't seem like he was fully awake. He would constantly lose focus on the world around him and start daydreaming about something. The Jounin considered the possibility that the blond was planning something for the fight that was to come, but he wasn't very sure about that.

The youth looked down at his plate as he started thinking once more, the visions he was having were very strange. He wondered what kind of name was a number, who would name themselves a number? But then again, maybe it was a call sign. But that was not very important; he wondered what happened to the 'ninth'. Why were his wings changing color? Why did he kill the other angels and then the three newcomers, but most importantly, why was he seeing all this?

The blond looked up from his plate and looked around the room. Everyone was at the table, Kakashi was sitting to his right, and then it was Sasuke and finally Sakura. In front of him stood Tsunami, next to her was her son, Inari and finally the bridge builder. The blond looked at the small boy for a few moments. The kid wasn't paying attention to what was going on at the table or around him and whenever a member of Team Seven was talking he would glare at said member with the corner of his eyes.

"So I was thinking…" Kakashi suddenly started speaking. "We should devise a tactic for when we engage Zabuza."

"How long do you think we have left sensei?" Sakura asked as she looked towards the Jounin.

Said Jounin scratched his chin in deep thought before replying. "I believe about five days or so."

"We should probably use two tactics…" Naruto suggested as everyone stared at him. "…A frontal attack and a hidden attack."

"Oh? And how do you plan on pulling that one?" the Jounin inquired with a raised eyebrow.

"Quite simple," the blond replied as they looked up at the ceiling. "With _Kage Bushins_ we could trick Zabuza and move around him and take him by surprise."

"You forget one thing Naruto. Zabuza is an A-ranked missing-nin; to sneak by him you would need excellent chakra control so you could mask your chakra," the Jounin said as he lifted his book to his face and started reading.

"Then you could sneak by him, while me and a _Kage bushin_ fight Zabuza head-on," the blond said after a moment of silence.

Just as Kakashi was about to reply, but Inari's voice presented itself before he could respond. "Why…why do you even try?" he asked as he looked towards the blond.

Naruto looked at the boy and brought his hands up placing them under his chin.

"So I can help the people of this town," he replied.

"Gato will kill you!" the boy spat vehemently. "You can't fight him, he and his thugs will kill anyone that gets in his way!" he shouted.

"Probably," the blond said with a small nod. "But no matter how many thugs he has, as long as we take Zabuza down; it shouldn't be a problem."

Inari glared while gritting his teeth in rage.

"Why are you so calm?" the boy demanded. "You think you know everything about this place! You think you know everything about our suffering?" he shouted as he stood up. "I bet you live a glorious live at home, spoiled by your parents!"

As the words left his mouth Kakashi dropped his book in shock, not expecting the small child to state something like that towards Naruto. He turned towards the blond to grab him and make sure he wouldn't attack the boy, but to his surprise, Naruto hadn't moved at all and didn't seem fazed by what Inari had said.

Team Seven—minus Naruto—looked towards the blond, waiting to see what his reply would be. They blocked out Tsunami's scolding and kept staring at the blond who stood silently at the table, like he was processing what he had just heard. It was no mystery that the blond was an orphan; it was no mystery that he took it hard. Back in the academy, he had gotten in a fight with Kiba after said boy mocked Naruto on this sensitive topic.

Suddenly, the blond sighed making everyone look towards him. "You know…I'd give anything to be in your position…" the blond responded frailly, drawing the attention of everyone around him, but instead of speaking further, the youth rose up from his seat and walked away.

"Naruto, where are you going?" Kakashi asked with concern as the blond started making his way towards the stairs.

"My room…" he said as he kept walking. He paused for a second and turned towards Inari leaving him with a few more words. "But…before I go…Inari; my life wasn't 'glorious'… and I never knew my parents."

* * *

Slowly, the blond closed the door behind him and sighed. He looked at his hands as pools of water began forming in his eyes. Thinking about the parents he never had was depressing to say the least. He had always wanted to feel the warmth of a family and hearing someone say that "you've always had one and that you were spoiled when you were young"… hurt…a lot. Though Naruto couldn't hold a grudge against Inari—he didn't know—and from what it seemed, the boy was suffering from some kind of loss as well.

Shaking his head, the blond walked to his bed and plopped on top of it. He sighed heavily as he rolled around to face the ceiling. He brought his arm up to his forehead and stood quietly, looking at the ceiling, like it would give him the answers he wanted, the knowledge he needed.

As he stood lying on the bed, Naruto contemplated on his visions once more. He could care less what people thought about him now; he had more pressing matters to attend to. Concentrating on remembering what he had seen when he was at the table he realized that something was not right. He could hear whispers around him, though he didn't understand what they were saying or where they were coming from.

Curiously, the blond started concentrating on the soft murmurs. Little by little they became clearer, he could hear two people arguing, about what, he didn't know nor understand.

He closed his eyes as images of death and destruction started appearing before him, a land with tall structures was before him, they were all in flames and falling apart. Corpses and skeletons around him, blood splattered on paved road and walls. He could vaguely see two people in the middle of the structures, facing each other …

"Dobe!" he heard someone shout. Naruto's eyes snapped open as he found himself staring at an angry Uchiha.

"You rang?" he asked with a grin, trying to piss off Sasuke. It worked as he saw the boy's left eyebrow twitch for a second.

"I've been calling you for the past ten minutes!" the boy said with anger evident in his voice. "Kakashi wants to know if you are alright and need anything."

The blond looked up at the ceiling as he shook his head. "Yeah, I'm alright…and no, I don't need anything," he replied as silence fell upon the room.

"So…" Sasuke suddenly started as the blond turned towards him, he saw the Uchiha looking at the door while scratching his cheek. "…what you said back there…"

The blond sighed as he looked at the ceiling and replied in a monotone voice. "Yes…never had parents, never knew who they were and so on…don't know why people in the academy thought they abandoned me…but I guess its cause they wanted to mock the dead last." He answered with a shrug as Sasuke looked down and rubbed the back of his neck, though it went unnoticed by the blond.

After a few minutes of silence, the blond heard the door open and then close. He looked around the room and saw that Sasuke had left. Looking back at the ceiling, he closed his eyes and started listening once more. Again he could hear the voices, anger, malice, despair, sorrow. He could feel all those emotions but he could not hear what the voices said.

He found himself staring at an Archangel; the world around them was collapsing as demons were dragging away the bodies of the dead. He tried to move and stop the demons but he found himself that he could not. Laughter then echoed around him, it was coming from him, he was laughing. He looked towards the Archangel and saw him unsheathing his blade.

"_I enjoyed every moment of it."_ The blond heard someone say, but as he heard those words once more he realized that they were coming from him.

Fear washed over him as he started thinking that he might have done all this destruction, that he might have killed all these people. However all that was pushed aside as he realized that in the ninja world the buildings were not as big as these ones, and they had no strange looking metal machines.

He could see strange machines in flames all around them; people were lying around the machines ripped to pieces. They were wearing a strange uniform that he had never seen before, the look of horror on their faces sent a shiver down the blonde's spine.

Looking back at the Archangel his eyes widened as he saw him with his sword just inches away from his head. Just as the blade was about to cut him, another blade appeared out of thin air blocking the attack. He saw his hand holding the blade, but there was something strange. His robe was all bloody red and his gauntlet was pitch black. The sword had a sickly purple glow; he could feel the darkness coming from it.

He suddenly kicked the Archangel who fell on his back and with an unimaginable burst of speed he charged towards the fallen angel. He raised his sword to cut the angel, but no matter how hard he tried to stop himself the sword still descended upon his enemy. But just as it was about to hit its target, the angel vanished from his spot only to appear behind him.

Looking down he saw the angel's blade coming out of his chest, yet he felt no pain. Laughter echoed from him once more as he turned his head towards the Archangel. He grabbed the angel's sword and delivered a kick in his chin, and then he spun around and kicked the angel in his ribs sending him flying in a nearby building, dropping his sword in the process.

Naruto looked down at the sword he was holding, it vanished right before his eyes. His head turned towards the direction the angel was and saw him jumping out of the rubble with the sword in his hands. He dodged the attack and swung his own weapon, his attempt was blocked as the angel turned towards him and then two of them engaged in a furious sword fight.

They were evenly matched, each attack was met by a parry, each kick was met by a dodge, each spell was met by another one that nullified them both. As the world crumbled around them they kept on fighting. As the sun turned bloody red and the sky pitch black they kept fighting. As lava burst from the ground and buildings sunk into the ground they kept on fighting.

The demons watched as they exchanged blows, they kept their distance, none got involved. He saw eight strange angels watching over them, they looked like animals. He could not see them very well as his eyes were constantly focused on the Archangel he was battling.

With a stroke of luck, he managed to kick the Archangel and make him fly in a nearby wall. In a flash he was in front of the angel, holding him by the neck. The angel struggled against the strong grip; he dropped his sword as he tried to pry himself from the blonde's grip. The Archangels cowl fell as the wind blew; it revealed a woman which looked almost similar to Satsuki. The only difference was that she was more mature then the Satsuki he knew.

Despite all that, the blond could not stop himself from slamming her to the ground and cutting her right arm off. For the first time, since the battle started, he could hear something else apart from the swords. He heard her cry, he heard her shout in agony. To his despair, the blond realized that he was preparing to finish the Archangel. As he gazed into her eyes, he saw the face he knew all too well; he saw a malicious smile…he saw…himself.

Naruto shouted as he sprang out of his bed, he grabbed his head as he tried to catch his breath. What he had just seen was beyond anything he could have imagined. He didn't know what exactly he saw; could it have been a vision of the future? Or was it just a trick the demon inside of him was playing?

Whatever it was, it scared him. He looked up, he was surrounded by darkness; it was night time most likely. He looked to his left and saw Sasuke asleep in his futon. Without a word, the blond lay down on the bed and closed his eyes, trying to get some sleep.

For hours the blond twitched and turned in his bed trying to fall asleep, but no matter how hard he tried he couldn't. A strange feeling kept washing over him, something inside him was telling him to stand up, walk out the door and find out what was out there. The feeling that there were things walking on the streets kept washing over him, things that he wanted to find. He could not understand the feeling and he could not block it.

To his relief, the feeling vanished after a few hours. But he still could not fall asleep, he now felt bad, he felt like he had done something bad. It was driving him insane.

With a groan, he stood up and walked out of the room. As the door closed behind him, Sasuke stood up and raised an eyebrow wondering what was going on with the blond. He shrugged thinking that he needed to go and went back to sleep.

* * *

The thick fog in the morning did not bid well with Naruto. As he stared out towards the foggy ocean he could not help but think that something bad was going to happen sooner or later. Ever since he woke up last night he could not go back to sleep anymore, the haunting feeling that something had happened while he tried to fall asleep did not vanish.

All night he stood on the porch, looking at the sea, and waiting. For what he was waiting he wasn't sure of himself.

Unsheathing his sword, he looked at it, he could vaguely see a white aura around it, he could hear whispers once more as he stared at the sword, people swearing to protect the innocent, swearing to maintain the balance of power.

"…_and in dark times, we shall rise to the challenge, we shall be the ones to drive them back. As the horns of war cry out in the night, we will gather our strengths, as the fire of hell burns into the night; we shall be the ones to put them off…_

…_blessing upon the righteous warriors, blessing upon those that stand in dark times and fight the evil, visible or not…_

…_we will fight till the end, upholding the sacred laws, never to falter from our ways, never to succumb to darkness, and if we fail, we fail every being on these lands. There is no greater punishment for failure, then joining the ranks of the damned…"_

"Impressive speech Naruto," the blond heard his sensei say, his eyes snapped open as he looked behind him and saw the Jounin sitting on a chair reading his book.

"Uh…yeah…" he replied, not realizing he had spoken out loud what he was hearing from the whispers.

"So where did you learn that?" the Jounin asked curiously.

The blond sheathed his sword as he looked back towards the sea. "Heard it a long time ago…" He replied calmly, the silver haired man looked at the blond for a second before shrugging.

The two stood in silence, one reading his book and the other watching the sea. The sounds of birds chirping could be heard and the wind blowing through the trees, apart from that, there was nothing, only silence.

As Kakashi looked towards the blond he remembered what Sasuke had told him in the morning. He was sure he heard the blond yell last night; he passed it out as a bad nightmare as he couldn't sense any other chakra in the room. This morning Sasuke confirmed that, the blond woke up in the middle of the night screaming and then left the room after a few hours of trashing in his bed.

Until last night the blond managed to sleep without problems, at times he thought that Naruto had fallen in a coma due to the fact that nothing could wake him up. But this new turn of events slightly frightened the Jounin; he didn't want the blond to be tired and unprepared for the fight with Zabuza. The worst thing that could happen is lose the blond in the fight, Sarutobi would never forgive him for that and he would never be able to forgive himself for that.

Thinking back right now, he pondered if it was the right thing to take a C-rank mission. Also considering the fact that said C-rank suddenly turned into an A-rank due to Zabuza. Maybe it hadn't been the right thing to do, but he could not know for sure, he didn't have the ability to turn back time and see what would have happened if he didn't take the mission.

Then there was the strange case of the corpses in the forest, whatever had eaten them was surely not your average wolf or bear. Maybe a summon? Or was it more than that? No matter how much he pondered on this question he didn't know what the answer would be, he didn't know what to think. But looking at the blond, he somehow thought that he knew what ate those two men.

"Naruto…" the Jounin said getting the blonde's attention. "You will head into town today with Sakura and Tsunami to pick up some food, me and Sasuke will look after the bridge builder." The blond nodded letting the Jounin know that he understood what his task was.

Sitting up, the silver haired ninja looked at his pupil one last time before heading into the house, his mind still filled with questions about the blond, questions that most likely would never be answered.

The blond watched with the corner of his eyes as the Jounin left. When he was sure that he wasn't there anymore he unsheathed his sword and looked at it again. This time images of war flashed before him, people clad in armor holding swords, shields, pikes, bows and many other weapons fighting against demons.

Shaking his head, he stood up and sheathed his sword; he would have time for visions later, preferably when he gets back home.

As he walked inside the house he found Kakashi sitting at the table in the dining room, Tazuna was eating and Sasuke was getting ready to depart with the Jounin. Then he heard people coming down the stairs and looked towards them. He saw Inari coming down; the two looked at each other for a second. The young boy then looked down and walked away in silence.

Tsunami, who was behind him, looked at her son with a frown and then turned towards the blond to apologize for Inari's behavior from last night, seeing what the woman wanted to do, the blond turned around and shook his head as he stepped out the door.

A few minutes later, Tsunami and Sakura stepped out as well and the three of them started walking towards the center of the town in silence.

Sakura didn't know what to say to Naruto after what she had heard last night, to think that everyone in the academy made fun of the blond on this theme by saying that his parents abandoned him and to think she had said that behind his back a few years ago. It made her sick just thinking about it.

"Naruto…" Sakura said weakly, the blond barely heard her. "I'm sorry…about what I said some years ago…" she told the blond quietly, though he heard her. A small smile appeared on his lips, he never really held grudges against people but it was nice to hear an apology.

The day went on without incidents, in the end Tsunami managed to lighten the mood and make the blond talk then later Sakura joined the conversation. They discussed about life in Konoha, about their time in the academy. Naruto had fun telling Tsunami all about his mischief, he relayed her all the pranks he did, of course he still didn't tell them about the soap prank as Sakura might have blown a fuse about it.

He talked about his friends, the few that he had and about the Hokage. Tsunami was surprised to learn that he considered the Hokage his grandfather and the Hokage himself cared for the boy like his own grandson. Even Sakura was surprised to learn that, that explained why Naruto always managed to get away from more sticky situations and why the old man gave them a C-rank.

They walked through the town for a few hours trying to find all the necessary items to make dinner. The blond was shocked to see the poverty these people lived in, it was worse then he had when he was little; children lying on the streets, begging for food, scavenging through the trash along with adults.

Even Sakura was shocked at what she was seeing; the elder woman told them that the poverty began after Gato took complete control over the land. She also told them about Inari's father who had died at the hands of Gato, the blond wasn't surprised about this; he had pretty much figured that one out by the young boy's attitude and cold personality.

As they were walking through the streets the blond suddenly stopped walking and started sniffing the air.

"What's wrong?" asked Tsunami with concern.

"Don't you smell it?" the blond inquired as the two female's started sniffing the air and shook their heads. "It's the smell of death…" the blond told them as he looked around and started running in a nearby alley.

"Wait, Naruto!" Sakura shouted as she ran after him followed by a worried Tsunami.

A few seconds later they arrived at a gruesome sight. At the end of the alley they found the blond starring at a pool of blood filled with bones and flesh, but not just any bones and flesh. A human head was present in the pool, the body of a human being ripped to shreds.

Sakura stood rooted in place at what she was seeing while Tsunami yelled out in fright and brought her hands to her mouth. A few seconds' later people rushed into the alley to find out who yelled; they were all shocked at the carnage they saw before them. Everyone started shouting that Gato was behind it, that he was teaching them a lesson for bringing ninja's to their country, to finish the bridge.

The blond crouched and moved his hand in the pool of blood, images flashed before his eyes, images of the demons that had killed the people. Slowly taking his hand out, he stood up and turned his head towards Sakura.

"Tell Kakashi-sensei I won't be back until the fight…" he relayed her as he turned towards the pool of blood. "…I got business to take care of." And with that he jumped up on the roofs and started running away towards the forest without giving Sakura a chance to stop him.

* * *

The sound of a flesh being ripped could be heard in the night as two strange creatures were devouring the body of their prey in an alley. Blood splattered all around them as they kept on ripping the flesh of the deceased man.

Up on the roofs an angel watched over them, his anger boiling inside of him. A small while flame appeared around the sword he was carrying and as his anger grew the flame became stronger, slowly illuminating the area around him.

The intense light gave away his position as the two creatures stopped feasting and turned towards the source. They knew they could not stand a chance against the angel before them, they tried to run.

As they tried to run out of the alley the angel landed in front of them, punching them in the head and throwing them into the wall. The creatures jumped back on their feet and snarled at the angel, showing their long and sharp teeth.

They snarled trying to intimidate their opponent, trying to scare him. However, it had no effect as the angel vanished from his spot and appeared in front of them, chopping the head off from one and grabbing the second by its scaly throat.

As the beast struggled in the angels grip, the figure moved closer to it and asked. "Where are the rest?"

The demon snarled at its enemy as the angel tightened his grip making the demon struggle more and more.

"Talk!" he demanded.

The only response he got was a claw over his cheek. The angel touched his cheek with his hand and felt the blood oozing out of the wound the demon gave him. He looked towards the creature which grinned in victory and broke its neck.

As the body fell to the ground the angel raised his right hand up towards the sky. A beam of light shot down into his hand and a white flame appeared in his open palm. He brought his hand closer to him and closed his eyes and started chanting, the flame grew bigger.

As he opened his eyes the flame intensified and exploded creating a circle of flames around him that burned everything in the alley, leaving nothing. Not even ash.

The angel looked around one last time before spreading his wings and vanishing from the alley.

* * *

As the days passed Kakashi got more and more worried with the blond boy, a worry that soon turned into anger. When Sakura first returned with Tsunami and he learned what the blond did he immediately left the house in search for Naruto. But no matter how hard he tried to find him and no matter where he looked it seemed like the blond had vanished.

As the day of the fight with Zabuza grew near, Kakashi became more worried as to what will happen to them during the fight considering the fact that they were now one man short and he was also worried as to what happened to the blond.

He tried to focus on other things, he tried to clear his thoughts and prepare for the battle, but he couldn't.

As he looked towards the porch, he saw Sasuke sitting in the spot Naruto used to sit and looking out towards the sea, like he was also waiting for something. As he looked towards the end of the table in the kitchen, he saw Sakura looking at the table with a gloomy look on her face.

Everyone was worried for the blond. Considering how they treated him in the academy, the one hundred and eighty degree turn they just made was incredible.

The Jounin was now more than sure that the team was united, or at least two of them. Naruto was still a bit of a mystery even in this category. Letting out a deep sigh, the Jounin sat up and looked towards one of his Genin.

"It's time we get going." He said as the girl looked up at him briefly and then down at the table once more. She nodded silently as she stood up and went to look for the bridge builder.

As Sakura started walking up the stairs, the Jounin got up and walked out the door. As he stepped outside he took a deep breath and walked towards the porch.

"Better get ready Sasuke." He told the Uchiha who looked at him with the corner of his eyes before giving a short nod.

"You worried about Naruto?" asked Kakashi as Sasuke turned to glare at him. He stood up and walked pass the Jounin.

"Feh…I'm not worried about the dobe, not one bit." He replied as the Jounin shook his head, knowing it wasn't true.

As Sasuke got farther away from his sensei he looked down at the ground with a frown. He lied back there, he knew it and he was sure the Jounin knew as well. He was worried for the blond idiot. He was at least sure that some lowly thugs wouldn't be able to harm him…but a ninja like Zabuza was something else.

He looked up towards the bridge and saw fog at the horizon, he knew what that meant. For the first time, ever since he met Naruto, he wished that he was here. Whenever they were together it was strange. Sometimes they would argue, other times they would somewhat get along.

The rivalry between them was an interesting one. Thinking back, Sasuke realized that Naruto always cared for him as a friend. Since they first met in the academy and even after the incident, the blond kept trying to be friendly with him.

A pang of guilt washed over Sasuke, maybe he had been too rough on him, maybe his actions were out of place. The teachings of his father, the loss of his family, it made him react differently then he should have.

Shaking his head, he looked towards the house and saw Sakura walking out with the bridge builder and Kakashi. He looked towards the bridge; the fog was intensifying and drawing closer with each second.

He looked up at the sky and wondered if Naruto would show up, he also wondered where he was.

* * *

"_Five…no…"_ the blond sped through the forest towards the sound of battle, the fog around him made it hard for him to see, though his senses were on high alert and he could feel something out of place.

"_Ten…twenty…thirty…"_ he thought as he jumped on a nearby branch and crouched. He listened carefully as the wind whispered, telling him where the battle was. He bent forward and jumped from the branch towards another tree, continuing his journey.

"_Fifty…yes…"_ it was hard to actually pinpoint all his enemies; someone was trying to mask them. For a ninja it might work, but for him, a spell such as that had little effect. Ever since he started running towards the builder's house he felt the spell and with each step he took towards it the spell intensified.

"_Hmm…no…a hundred…bah…this is getting me nowhere…" _he thought. The closer he drew towards the sounds of battle the larger the number of enemies he could detect.

Jumping on another branch the blond stopped moving and stood up straight. He placed his hand on the tree and looked at the bridge in front of him. Or at least he thought it was the bridge. He could feel his sensei's chakra coming from there, Sasuke's and Zabuza's. There was another chakra signature that he couldn't identify.

Somewhere in the back, he could feel Sakura's charka signature as well, but it was weak, maybe due to the fact that she had such low reserves. He could not feel Tazuna's signature however, though he could not smell death in the air therefore the man was surely still alive.

Spreading his wings, the blond glided over towards the bridge. As he landed on the bridge he thought he heard the battle between Zabuza and Kakashi stop for a brief second, like they had felt his arrival. He would not be surprised if that was the case considering they were both high ranking ninja's.

He looked around, the fog was starting to get on his nerves; if his enemies attacked him in this thick fog he would be dead. He needed to see them all if he was going to protect everyone on the bridge.

Taking his sword out, the blond turned it upside down and plunged it into the ground. He then kneeled next to the sword and started channeling energy into it. A few moments later a beam shot upwards creating a large sphere which in turn exploded. The shockwave dispelled the jutsu used by Zabuza to create the fog, slowly, the fog started to fade away and the blond could see everything around him.

The battle between Zabuza and Kakashi stopped as they both turned towards the blond and looked at him with wide eyes, Zabuza was impressed that a mere Genin managed to break his jutsu like that. Plus, the energy he felt a moment ago, he was sure it wasn't chakra, it was more potent, more powerful and wilder.

Even Haku was shocked by the power of the jutsu or whatever it was that the blond used. That shockwave managed to destroy his dome of ice, it shattered every mirror and it would have killed him if he had not jumped out of the mirror in time.

"Naruto?" the Jounin asked with a shocked look on his face.

Clapping resonated as everyone looked at the end of the bridge where a small fat man stood with a large number of thugs. The missing-nin growled as he laid his eyes on the small man.

"Gato…what is the meaning of this?" he asked as the man grinned devilishly and the blond took his sword out of the ground.

"That's not Gato…" the blond said as the small man turned towards him and started laughing.

"Well, well…we come here for fun and chaos…and we find you." He replied in a deep voice, making Zabuza wonder why the man sounds so different all of a sudden.

"Tell me…" the blond started "Where is the portal?" he asked as the man makes a dumb face towards the blond and then starts laughing with the rest of the men.

"You really think we will tell you?" he asked as he locks eyes with the boy. "You think we will let you hinder our plans?" he inquired with a snarl.

The blond takes a step forward as the thugs ready their weapons. "You will tell me." the blond replied with a low voice as he glares towards the small man.

The man blinks for a few seconds before bursting into laughter, he then turns towards Zabuza and grins. "You know, I was never going to pay you…" the man in question stiffens as he tightens his grip on the sword. "I was going to kill you right after you dealt with the … ninja."

"I will make you regret that decision." The missing-nin replied with anger as he took a step forward, getting ready to charge into the masses and kill his former employer.

"Stop!" the blond ordered as Zabuza looks at him in anger, who does that brat think he is ordering him around? "Why don't you show your true colors…demon?" asked the blond calmly as Gato grinned like a madman.

"Oh? And here I thought you wouldn't want us to reveal ourselves…such a bad Guardian you are," the small man replied laughing. "Very well then…let me show you…who you are dealing with…angel."

Everyone apart from Naruto took a step back in shock as Gato and his thugs started changing before their eyes, they bodies twisting and turning, growing bigger with each second. Their flesh ripped apart as some grew taller than a normal human.

The ninja's and the bridge builder watched in morbid fascination as the men before them grew tails, large pointy teeth, claws or even a second head. Their bodies became disfigured and barely resembled a human. It was like they came from man's worst nightmares.

The majority of them had the body of a human being, but it had a dark red color, claw marks all over the torso and scales covered all of it. They had normal human legs and feet, and one human arm. Their second arm, left or right, looked like some sort of sword. It was attached to their bodies. Their faces looked like the face of a human that was severely burned, claw marks were present on their faces and stitches barely kept part of their faces from falling down on the ground.

A smaller number started growing four more arms out of their bodies; they dropped on their hands as spikes burst out of their back. Their skin changed into pitch black, their eyes turned bloody red and chains dropped from inside their bodies. Strange metallic masks appeared on their faces, it looked like their mouths were sewed shut and needles were coming out of their eyes.

The blond kept staring at Gato as the man's skin started falling off revealing the flesh which in turn started to vanish. He watched as the bones started appearing through the reminder of the flesh, a black robe and cowl suddenly warped around the demon completely covering its face. Finally a scythe rose from the ground which the demon caught with its bony hand.

He scanned the area, counting the enemies before him. He looked towards the black robed demon wondering what it can do. He knew it was the leader as the rest of the demons had listened to his orders, the leader grinned towards the blond as ten red demons took a step forward.

"Let me introduce you to the Gorefasts," the leader said as ten red demons—known as Gorefasts—suddenly leaped towards the blond.

His eyes widened as he jumped backwards, the ten demons crashed into the ground leaving a small crater. They looked up towards the blond and snarled at him as they charged forward. In a few seconds the demons surrounded the blond and wasted no time in attacking. With a swift motion, the blond unsheathed his sword and started parrying the enemy's attacks.

He was surprised at the speed the demons possessed, though their skill with the blade was far inferior to his. As the blond parried an attack he slashed towards the demon cutting it in half and then spun around ducking under an attack and slashing the demon before him.

The blond back flipped through the remaining demons and jumped on top of the last one grabbing its neck with his feet. He raised his sword and impaled the demon in the head, he placed his feet on the demons shoulder and jumped away just in time as the enemies sword slashed the impaled demon.

"Impressive…" the leader said as the blond landed a few steps away from the third downed demon. "I'm surprised the Gorefasts didn't manage to land one blow on you…"

The leader then turned towards Sakura and saw her shaking in fear at what she was seeing. He then turned towards the Jounin and saw him looking in morbid fascination at the Gorefasts.

He laughed at their expressions. "Why so shocked?" he asked "After all…the Gorefasts are humanities creation." He revealed to them with glee evident in his voice.

"What?" the Jounin asked in shock as the leader laughed.

"The Gorefasts are a result of human experiments…they were once humans…it was other humans that turned them into demons." He replied with a sickly grin as the blond cut the last Gorefast of the ten.

He looked up towards the remaining army and glared as the leader frowned. "You killed them already? So sad…" he said in a mock voice. "I wish I could play with you some more, but we have a busy schedule. So I'm afraid we will have to kill you and free our master." He said as he extended his hand towards the blond. "Go. Bring me his hearth!"

The blond took a step back as all two hundred demons charged at the same time. "Shit…" he cursed as a Gorefast leaped towards him, he raised his sword and parried the attack, then grabbed the demon by the throat and slammed him on the floor, finally he impaled it with his sword and jumped backwards as a black demon tried to jump on top of him.

His eyes widened as the black demon suddenly opened its mouth and spat out acid towards him; he jumped out of the way, the acid hit a demon behind him burning its torso and pissing it off. The injured demon roared as it slashed its fellow demon and then turned towards the blond, it raised its sword in the air and charged towards the blond.

The blond ducked under the attack and grabbed the demon by the arm; he spun around with it and released it into the massed. He moved his sword behind him blocking an attack and kicked the demon behind him in the chest, he side stepped as another demon tried to slash him.

A few feet away Zabuza was starting to get over his shock as he was seeing the blond fight against unfair odds. He could see the blond was fairing rather well but he knew what the outcome would be if someone didn't help him. Turning towards the Jounin-sensei he called out for him.

"Kakashi!" the Jounin shook his head as he heard his name being called and turned towards the missing-nin. "We have to help him! He won't last for long."

The Jounin turned towards the battle and saw the blond barely dodge a sword, he turned towards Zabuza and nodded. "Alright, let's do—!"

"Stop!" the blond shouted as he jumped over an attack. "Don't interfere, you'll just get killed!" he shouted as he formed a small fireball in his hand and hurled it towards a demon, incinerating it.

"You can't take on those odds!" the Jounin shouted back as he took out his kunai.

"Fuck!" they heard the blond swear. "If you even dare take a step forward I swear I will punch you so hard that your teeth will fall from your mouth!" he shouted as he slashed through three demons at the same time.

The Jounin's eyes widen at the outburst, his own student was ordering him around and threatening him. He didn't know how to react, especially now. One of his students was fighting an army of demons; monsters and it looked like he needed help. Yet when help was offered, the blond rejected it?

Kakashi was shaken out of his shock as he suddenly heard the blond yelp in pain. His eyes widen in fear as a demon managed to strike the blond. Said boy jumped away from the masses and landed on the bridge's rail, his hand was on his neck and blood was slowly pouring out.

Naruto started coughing as he concentrated on his wound, his hand started glowing and he felt the wound closing. He opened his eyes and watched in horror as the pendant he was wearing around his neck was now laying on the ground, in the masses.

Before everyone's eyes, the blonde's image started shimmering and in a matter of seconds the blond boy everyone knew vanished and instead of his stood an angel. White wings, a white robe, a cowl covering the angels face. All of it was present.

"Well, well…you finally show _your_ true colors," the demon leader said with a smirk as the masses charged once more.

The blond shook his head and narrowed his eyes; he spread his wings and jumped in the air dodging several acid spits. He raised his sword in the air as a bright light shot into it and illuminated the area making everyone cover their eyes or look away. The bystanders could then hear several screams of pain.

As they looked towards the battlefield they saw about a quarter of the demon army in flames, white flames, struggling to put them off. They watched in morbid fascination as the skin was melting off them. The blond raised his left knee up and his wings, he started descending with great speed towards the ground, in the middle of the masses.

He crashed in between them creating a large crater and a powerful shockwave that sent half of the demons flying away. He slowly stood up and looked around, the demons were starting to gather their forces once more, but they were down to half. He smirked under his hood as he looked towards the leader who in turn frowned.

"Did you think it would be that easy?" the leader asked as he raised his hand towards the sky and a green beam shot into his hand which in turn shot in the ground. Skeleton hands started popping out of the ground, in a few seconds a large skeleton army started dragging itself out of the ground.

The blond silently cursed as the demon army grew two times bigger, he now knew what type of demon the leader was. A necromancer and judging by the number of skeletons it summoned it could only mean that the necromancer was a very powerful one. That made things more complicated than they were already.

He watched as the skeletons slowly made their way towards him and the demon took position behind the skeletons. It seemed like the former were going to be used as cannon fodder.

"_Call for aid, call for the army." _He heard a voice telling him.

"_How? How do I call them?"_ he asked as the voice whispered to him, the blond grinned as he moved his hands to the side and slightly bowed his head.

The necromancer widened his eyes. "Stop him! Stop him before he finishes the spell!" he ordered as the skeletons and demons charged forward. Several Gorefasts leaped towards the blond and just as their swords were about to cut him the blond looked up towards them; a sphere appeared around him and blocked the attacks.

The blond brought his right hand in front of him and then punched the ground, rays of light started shooting from the sky towards the blond and as they hit his body their started multiplying, creating seven large white _shurikens_ that moved out of his body in a circle towards the demons.

As the _shurikens_ hit the demons they exploded and either set the demons on fire or ripped their bodies in half. As the demons were busy dodging the attack the blond started chanting, the shield around him died as the light rays stopped dropping. As the last light shuriken hit its target the demons roared in anger and charged towards the blond once more.

The blond raised his fist from the ground and opened his palm, he then touched the ground and seals appeared around him. Small portals opened and a large number of figures stepped out of the portals. The bystanders watched in awe as an army appeared around the blond. They were all covered in armor; even their heads were covered with a metal helmet. The majority of them were wielding a shield and a sword or axe while a small number had a bow in their hands.

Slowly the blond stood up and looked towards the leader, the soldiers assumed a defensive position as the demon army collided with them.

"Aim!" an archer shouted as the rest of them raised their bows in the sky. "Fire!" he shouted as they all unleashed a barrage of arrows upon the skeleton army taking more than a quarter down.

"Again!" the same archer shouted as they all readied their bows.

The blond watched as the sword wielding soldiers and axe wilders were fighting the _Gorefasts_ and the black demons. From time to time a skeleton would reach one of the soldiers but it would be easily dispatched by the fighter. He turned towards the necromancer who seemed to be fuming and grinned.

In a flash the blond vanished from his spot and appeared in front of the necromancer, a resonating clang was heard as the necromancer parried the blonde's attack with his scythe.

"You won't defeat us that easily." The necromancer said as he attempted to slash the blond.

"You're just a summoner…" the blond commented as he jumped out of the way and attacked the necromancer. "The only thing you can do is summon the armies of the damned…you…can't fight." He replied with a grin as the necromancer roared and started flailing his scythe around like a madman.

The blond realized from the start that the necromancer had no power apart from summoning skeletons or other undead beings. If the necromancer knew some curses or spells then he would have used them, he knew that demons never held back in a fight, they went all out.

By the way the necromancer was swinging his scythe the blond knew he didn't even have any skill with it. His enemy might have great powers when summoning, but without his summons to protect him he was weak.

The blond ducked under a swipe and saw the necromancer jumping backwards, the demon raised his hand in the air once more and summoned twenty skeletons that assumed a defensive position around him. The blond growled as the necromancer grinned devilishly.

"We can take them." A voice said behind the blond, looking back wit the corner of his eyes he grinned as he saw three sword wielding knights. He nodded as one of the knights punched his fists together and unsheathed his sword, all three charged at the same time taking the small skeleton army head on.

The blond soon followed slashing through five skeletons until he reached his target. The necromancer raised his scythe one more time blocking the blond's attack, said blond grinned as he kicked the necromancer in the chest, he then spun around and kicked the necromancer one more time sending him in the air. The blond spread his wings and jumped up towards his target.

"I won't let you win!" the necromancer shouted as he lowered his scythe towards the blond who raised his sword to block the attack. The blond grit his teeth as the tip of the scythe managed to cut into his shoulder.

"Just die!" the blond shouted as he grabbed the necromancer by the arms and disarmed him. As the scythe dropped on the ground the blond slammed the necromancer on the ground and then crashed on top of him, impaling the necromancer with his sword in the chest.

The necromancer grinned, unfazed by the attack. The response he got was a white flame appearing around the blade and a smirk from the blond. "I've been told about the necromancers…I know a stab, a cut, or anything like that won't kill you, let alone hurt you…" as the flames intensified the necromancer started panicking as he was feeling the heat. "…but the holy flames…now that's another story." He said as the necromancer shouted in pain and flames around the sword exploded encasing the necromancer and burning him, leaving nothing but ash.

As the necromancer vanished, the skeletons stopped dead in their tracks, their bodies started shaking before they collapsed on the ground in a pile of bones. The reminder of the demons was dispatched by the knights.

* * *

"Not much of a challenge…" Zabuza said as a Crawler dropped on the ground. He placed his sword on his shoulder and looked up at the large red spiraling portal at the entrance of a cave.

"Alone they are weak, in masses they are a problem." The blond replied, no longer wearing the Genjutsu.

"Could you close that thing before any more come out?" asked Zabuza with a bit of fright in his voice, after everything he had witnessed today he didn't know what was real anymore, or if anyone around him was even human for that matter. It was natural for him to be afraid, after all, he had seen demons in the flesh and he had fought against a handful.

The only reason he was in the forest with the blond was because of Kakashi. After the battle at the bridge the blond had to explain them what was going on. He still didn't really understand everything, something about a battle between Heaven and Hell and that the blond was some kind of key that was supposed to keep the gates of hell closed…he didn't really understand it.

Of course, after the battle was over the knights vanished in thin air, the bodies of the demons were burned by the blond with the same white fireball he had used before and he wanted to leave to search for this portal right after he was done with all that. Kakashi was not alright with that but when he had to pick between letting Zabuza look after Tazuna and his team, or leave his team alone with no one, Kakashi chose to let Zabuza go with the blond.

The Jounin kept Haku to make sure Zabuza didn't try any funny business, but even the Jounin knew that Zabuza was not that dumb to go against an angel. Naruto had to leave as fast as he could from the bridge, he didn't want to explain to his team everything, not yet. He wasn't ready to reveal secrets that would create mass panic; he had to make sure his team wouldn't go around revealing secrets. He already knew Zabuza, Haku and Tazuna would keep silent, they were too shocked, sickened with what had happened and what they witnessed to say something.

"Yes, but even if more come out, without a leader they aren't very organized," the blond said as he stood up, he looked at the seals he created on the ground. Closing his eyes, the blond slowly placed his hands on two triangles. The winds started intensifying as circles appeared around the blond creating a rotating sphere. The circles started moving faster and faster as the winds started blowing with more force.

Zabuza watched in awe as the sphere shattered and particles of light shot towards the portal creating large chains. The chains slowly swallowed up the portal until it vanished, a few seconds later the chains shattered in small particles of light that in turn vanished into the air. The wind stopped blowing and the seals vanished, the blond slowly stood up and dusted his robe.

"That wasn't as hard as I thought it would be," he said as he looked towards the cave entrance, where the portal to Hell once stood.

* * *

**A/N: Beta credit go to Infamous Storm. **

**I am late with this chapter due to a lot of reasons which I will not state so as not to bore you all to death...I will post the next chapter as soon as I can...**

**References: Gorefast and Crawlers are mutants from the game **_**Killing Floor**_**. Type their name in Google to get an image, I modified them a bit to fit my tastes. The black demons are Crawlers, so to get the confusion out of the way.**


	6. New Path

**Disclaimer: I hope you realize this is getting boring to write…that is the disclaimer…**

**The Archangel – New Path  
**

"Do you know understand the situation?" inquired an angel as Naruto kept staring at the waterfall before him.

"Yes, I understand it now …" he replied weakly, it had been two days since the battle at the bridge, he never returned to Tazuna's place. It was bad enough that there were people out there now that knew, or at least had an idea of what was happening in the world; he didn't need to show himself to others.

The boy looked up at the angel; he was wearing a robe just like him with the cowl covering his head. On his chest, plate armor, his knees and arms were also covered by plate; however, he was also wearing a metal helmet. He didn't understand why though, so far he had met only three angels in total. The first one he met, from what he understood, was one of the leaders of Heaven's army, the seconds one which was present in his mindscape was dressed similar to Naruto and then this one.

The angel had a short sword tied to his waist and a shield to his arm. On his back he had a massive axe, it was twice as big as the blond, he wondered how heavy the weapon was and how could the angel before him wield it. He was certain that he wouldn't even be able to lift the damn thing.

He looked away from the weapon and back towards the waterfall, he could hear the people celebrating the completion of the bridge. He wished he could go there and have fun, but he would only draw unwanted attention towards himself. Kakashi had no idea how to recreate the genjutsu, Zabuza even less. As for Haku…he didn't really bother, Zabuza had made it clear that neither him nor Haku knew how to cast genjutsu's.

Scavenging through his pockets the blond retrieved the necklace, it was completely shattered, not a single drop of chakra was left inside. Just because he dropped his guard, just because of that he lost the item that gave him the freedom he needed to walk the streets.

"You won't need that anymore." The angel said as he saw the blond staring at the shattered item. "Its best you accept what you are now."

He nodded sadly, there was no point in running, not that he had a choice. A few weeks ago, if the opportunity to run from all this mess had risen he would have taken it without a second thought, but now … with what he had witnessed and fought, he knew he couldn't leave it like this. Besides, he couldn't let Kyuubi win, he'd die before he'd let the fox leave victoriously.

"You never told me why you are here." The blond said quietly, he was enjoying the outdoor when the angel popped out of nowhere. It freaked him out, he nearly cut the angel in half with his sword. The angel however proved to have great reflexes, using his shield he parried the sword before it got too close.

"You've made contact with the army, when they returned the news of the new Guardian spread like wildfire in the camp…" the angel relayed making the boy raise an eyebrow "…they wish to see you, the camp commander also desires to talk with you…"

He nodded as he stood up. "Then where is the camp? I'll head over there right now." He replied as the angel shook his head.

"Its location cannot be reached at this time; at least you cannot reach it physically … we've set up several protective barriers to keep people away from it…" stated the angel as it moved towards the waterfall.

"Why all the protection?" inquired the blond moving next to the angel.

"We are still gathering all our forces, the rift between Earth and Heaven is fragile in that location. If the demons find the camp and attack us in full force we'd most likely lose and they would have access to our realm." He replied making the blond understand what was at risk.

"You said physically…what does that mean?" asked the blond after a short pause, the angel chuckled before turning his head in the boy's direction and answering his question.

"Your spirit can enter the island, yet your body cannot." He answered making another question pop into the blond's head. However the angel expected it and replied before the blond could ask. "This is the reason why I am here, to take you there and watch over your body while you are there." He said as he motioned to the blond to follow him.

He did as he was told; he followed the angel who moved away from the waterfall and in a nearby clearing. They walked in silence in the middle of the clearing and then stopped; the angel turned towards the blond and beckoned him to sit on the grass. He did as he was told while the angel proceeded to draw strange markings on the ground with his finger. The grass vanished where the finger passed, leaving a small trail on the ground.

"We will have to be careful, usually we can leave our _physical_ bodies for an undetermined amount of time…since we had no such thing to begin with…" he explained as Naruto nodded understanding what the angel was implying. "…it should be the same with you, despite the fact that you are still human, however, you house a demon we know nothing about. For all we know, it could try to break free and take over your body if you stay out too long. That is something we cannot risk." He said as he stopped drawing.

The blond thought it over, there was something else about the angels reason to be here. He looked at the way he was dressed and the weapons he was wielding. He raised an eyebrow, there was a second reason the angel was here to watch over him…but he doubted they would actually do it. From what he understood and the way the demons wanted him out of the picture so badly meant that he played a key role in this entire ordeal.

Still, maybe he could flush some answers from the angel. "You called me _Guardian_ … and so did the necromancer and Kyuubi…" the angel looked at the blond, he knew what he had called him but was it alright for him to explain? He wasn't sure if he was the one that should reveal this secret to him.

"I'm afraid I'm not allowed to give any information regarding that matter…" he replied "…you might have better luck if you ask the commander back at camp."

The blond nodded with a sigh, best not try pressing on. "You ready?" asked the angel as the boy nodded. "Clear your mind, you are no longer bounded to the ground, you have no restrains whatsoever…" slowly the angels words started to vanish, he could only hear whispers, voices that guided him, telling him what else he needed to do.

For the first time since he graduated he felt at peace, a smile graced his lips as he drifted through the world, he wasn't sure where he was being taken, where he needed to go. The angel told him the spirits would guide him to his destination. He had no doubt regarding that, but he was unconcerned by that matter.

He slowly felt the warmth vanishing and the voices disappearing, the smile faded from his lips as he slowly opened his eyes. The smell of camp fire, plants and melted steel invaded his nostrils. As his eyes opened he found himself in front of a large stone gate, bigger then the gate and walls protecting his home village, Konoha.

In front of the gate stood fifty knights, all wearing the same plate armor and the same type of helmet, a Great Helm. Pikes were strapped to their backs; in their hands they carried swords and shields.

One of the knights took a step forward and kneeled in front of the blond, soon the rest of them kneeled down as well, their swords resting in the ground in front of them.

"_Welcome honorable Guardian…welcome to our camp." _The knight said in a ghostly voice that sent a shiver down the blond's spine.

The blond bowed before the knights thanking them for the warm welcome. As he stood up the knights followed suit, the gate started opening as the knight from before beckoned the blond to follow him. Naruto nodded and followed the knight as he stepped inside the camp, the gates closing behind them.

The first thing he noticed when he entered the camp was just how gigantic it was. Tents were scatted everywhere, training grounds as far as the eye could see, more then twenty blacksmiths and at least three small chapels. At the middle of the camp, or what the blond assumed, was a massive church, maybe as tall as the Hokage monument itself.

He stood rooted in place gazing at the structure in all its glory, were it not for the angel he would have never known at what he was looking exactly.

"_Please follow me honorable one…"_ beckoned the knight shaking the blond out of his stupor. He turned towards his guide and followed him.

As they were making their way through the camp the blond realized that more and more warriors stopped what they were doing and turned to look at him. Some would kneel at him as he passed, others would give a short, courteous bow and others would just gaze in his direction.

However, there was something else, he could feel people staring at him with anger, he could feel malice coming from several directions. He didn't understand why he was hated here, he didn't understand what he had done wrong to have … the ghosts of ancient warriors, for the lack of better words, hate him.

Sensing his discomfort the knight decided to answer his unasked question. _"Do not hate them honorable one…"_ he said drawing the blond's attention. _"…they do not hate you…they hate your title…"_

"Guardian…" said the blond absent mindedly as the knight nodded.

"_I wish I could tell you why…but I am not allowed, it has nothing to do with you in general, but with what others had done in the past…"_ the knight told the blond making more questions pop in his head.

There was clearly something more with the title he received if part of his "army" hated his guts. As he looked around one more time he realized that he needed to talk with the commander about this matter, if he would actually have to lead these men and women into battle then he would need their trust completely.

"_This is where I stop."_ The knight said as he bowed in front of the blond. He looked to see where they had stopped, they were in front of a large tent, the two guards that were guarding the entrance were angels wearing the same type of armor the one in the clearing was. They also gave a courteous bow and asked him to step inside, telling him that the commander was already waiting for his arrival.

Nodding the blond looked towards the knight and thanked him, giving a small bow as well, he then stepped inside the tent and looked around. Maps and papers were scattered all over, a weapon and armor rack on each side of the tent, in the middle of the tent a large desk. Behind the desk stood an angel…but he seemed different from all the others.

He wore no robe, his entire body was covered in a metal armor, and only his face was covered by a white cowl. His wings were also different from all the others; they resembled tendrils that floated in the air. The angel had his hands under his chin, he was staring directly at the blond who bowed before the man.

He extended his hand and pointed towards the seat in front of him; the blond nodded slowly and took a seat. He stood in silence waiting for the commander to start talking, he felt like the angel was studying him intensively.

"It's a pleasure to finally meet you face to face Guardian." The commander said in a stoic voice.

"Why does everyone call me that?" he asked starting to get pissed off, he had no idea why he was called that, no one would tell him or explain it to him.

"That is not why I called you here to discuss I'm afraid…" the angel replied passively, his hands still under his chin. "Time is limited as it is, so please, listen to what I have to say."

Sighing, the blond nodded and got closer to the desk, the angel smiled under his cowl and turned the map on the desk around. The map showed the elemental countries, several locations were circled on the map. The vast majority of them were in Wind Country, close to the sea and a few were located in Lightning Country, not far from major trading hubs.

The blond scratched his chin, most likely the circled locations were strongholds of the demons, either that or locations of recently opened portals. The ones in Wind Country posed no thread in the blond's mind; they were far enough from any important trading hub or any village for that matter. If he were to choose a location to begin with he would most likely pick Lightning Country.

The commander watched as the blond studied the map intensively, he had expected the boy to ask what the map represented and what he was supposed to look at. He was surprised that the reports were indeed as accurate as they claimed to be. The blond was maturing at an incredible rate, understanding what he was supposed to do and not complaining about it. Part of it was his fault as it is, apparently he already understood that.

The commander hoped that this time they would succeed, the boy showed many promising signs, but he was still scared. The demon he harbored, they knew nothing of it. They paid little to no attention to the Bijuu when they first appeared, maybe they should have studied them when they had the chance, now it was too late to do so, whatever purpose the Bijuu had in the world would be revealed as time passes.

"Commander." The blond said seriously drawing the angel out of his trail of thoughts. "I assume you already have a plan on how to act."

"Indeed I do…" the angel replied with a nod. "As you might have figured out, the areas circled are where portals towards Hell have appeared, we've sent scouts to patrol the areas and they confirmed them. Unfortunately we cannot send any forces there."

The blond looked up with a puzzled look on his face. "You might not know it young one, but beyond the Elemental Countries there are other civilizations, they too are being attacked by demons, in even bigger numbers then here. The spirits of the dead have already awakened and fighting their old enemies, we moved most of our troops there to support them."

"Then how many troops do I have under my command?" asked the blond curiously.

"One hundred." Replied the commander "You will have to do with them, please bare in mind that if they die in the human world it will take some time to reconstruct their physical forms."

"I see…" the blond said in deep thought. So in a way they could not be killed, that gave a plus when fighting with demons, demons could be killed.

"That doesn't mean it will be easy…" the commander then said making the blond look up at him. "There are certain demons that can kill us…" he said with a deadly tone making the blond stiffen. "What you've faced so far is nothing, those are just lowly demons that cannot even touch our spiritual form…but there are those that can destroy our spiritual form, if that happens…we disappear, for good."

His eyes were wide open at the revelation, this complicated things. "But still…why didn't you just wipe the demons as they appeared and closed the portals before they even opened?" asked the blond.

The commander stood in silence for several minutes, maybe thinking of a reasonable reply. He sighed as he closed his eyes and turned his head away. "I wish it was that simple…there are only two angels that can close portals, one you've already met…the other…is you." He said looking straight at the blond.

"Why?" he asked "Why wouldn't the others be able to?"

"Its complicated young one, the portals were never meant to exist in the first place, the gates of Hell and Heaven were supposed to only be opened in their own realms, not in the human realm…" he stopped and looked away from the blond before continuing. "You could say its our fault this happened in the first place…we were tricked…the whole war started because we let ourselves be tricked…but, that's a story for another time young one." He said as he stood up. "I want you to head over to the portals as soon as you can…close them before the entire armies of Hell march out of them." The angel ordered as the blond suddenly vanished from the tent and the island itself.

* * *

As Naruto opened his eyes he found himself back in the clearing, he looked up towards the sky wondering how long he had been gone. He slowly stood up and looked for the angel that helped him.

"I trust you talked with the commander." He heard the angel's voice and turned towards him. He gave a small nod and the angel smiled. "Did he answer your question?" he asked curiously making the blond sigh and shake his head. The smile lessened as he nodded towards the blond boy. "Don't worry, you will find out soon enough, I just hope it won't make you…" he stopped himself and shook his head. "Pardon me…it's been nice meeting you Guardian." He said as he vanished in a bright light.

The blond pondered what the angel wanted to say, make him do what? He shook his head to clear the thoughts, this was not the time to make guesses, he had a task to complete. However, he couldn't just leave without telling his team and the Hokage, plus he didn't desire to be marked as a missing-nin. Fighting with demons was hard enough, outrunning hunter-nin's would only interfere with his mission.

Taking a deep breath the blond extended his arms and his wings, for some reason it felt good, feeling the wind blow through his wings. His eyes snapped open as he felt a presence behind him, he slowly turned around and chuckled at the Uchiha's face. The boy blinked and then scowled at his teammate.

"Oh…what's this?" asked Naruto "A blush? Don't tell me you're gay!" he laughed making the Uchiha fume.

"What the hell dobe?" he shouted, his face completely red from embarrassment.

"It would explain…haha…why you never picked a girl from your fan club." He laughed as he dropped on the ground and continued laughing while holding his sides.

The raven haired boy grit his teeth in anger, it felt as if his head would explode any moment now from anger. He tried to calm down, closing his eyes he tried to focus at something else, however his true self kept thinking of the blond and how he looked a few minutes ago. Cursing, the boy picked up a small stone and hurled it at the blond hitting him in the head and silencing him.

"What was that for?" the angel demanded angrily as his teammate crossed his arms over his chest and glared.

"We're worried dobe, you haven't come back to Tazuna's place since the battle, the entire town is looking for their … hero." He said with a bit of annoyance, it didn't matter to him that the blond was being viewed as a hero, he deserved it. He knew that if he had to fight against those odds he would have died, for the first time, he was actually glad Naruto had been around.

The blond stopped glaring and looked down sadly, people were looking for him, they were worried about him. The people of the small town were calling him a hero…and yet he couldn't be there to celebrate with them. He chuckled softly, after so many years people finally acknowledged him, yet he couldn't be there with them.

"I can't come back…" said the blond silently, his teammate said nothing return, he just looked at the blond. He didn't really understand why the blond couldn't return, Tazuna and the rest of Team 7 already knew that he was … an angel.

It was then that he realized, the shock they experienced when they found out the truth about the blond, when they realized he was fighting demons on the bridge. They all panicked, he knew Sakura had been shaking and having nightmares all night, at one point she was even afraid of Naruto for some strange reason. Even if he wouldn't admit it, he was scared as well, the thought alone made him tremble.

"Sasuke…?" the blond asked as he took a step towards his teammate, the boy in question raised his head and looked at the blond. "Why…are you crying?" he asked as the Uchiha's eyes widened, he quickly brought his hand up to his eyes and wiped them, he was indeed crying.

"I…I don't know…" he replied truthfully.

"You're afraid…" the blond said making Sasuke's eyes widen. "…either of me…or of what you saw two days ago…but that's the truth."

Sasuke couldn't deny it, even now when he thought about the battle at the bridge, even now it sent chills down his spine. They never trained you for that in the academy, he was prepared to take away someone's life, but he was not prepared to fight an army from Hell.

"Sasuke." He heard Naruto as he felt a hand on his shoulder, he looked up at the angel before him, he was sure this was not Naruto, not anymore. The power radiating from him, the way he talked and walked, he had matured more then anyone could in such a short time. It puzzled him a little, how did he get this power? Was it because of it that he matured so fast? Why does he have to fight the demons of Hell? And a lot more questions.

"The world is not as you know it…not anymore…" the blond said as the Uchiha's eyes widened.

"What do you mean?" he asked as Naruto sighed.

"You saw it for yourself, what I fought, what I am." He replied as he took his hand away from his teammates shoulder. "I don't like it, not one bit…and yet, I have to do it, I have to fight."

"Why are you telling me all this?" the raven haired boy asked curiously, why was Naruto telling him all of this? Was he trying to comfort him in some way? Was he trying to reassure him about something? He couldn't understand it.

The blond sighed as he took several steps back and turned around. "I don't know…I just…I think it's the right thing to do…" he said as he started walking away "Tell Kakashi-sensei I will meet you guys tomorrow at the end of the bridge, in the forest, away from everyone's eyes."

Before Sasuke could say anything the blond vanished from his sight into the forest. He didn't bother chasing after him, he knew better then to try and follow Naruto, if he was able to hide from them for the past two days it would be impossible to find him now.

* * *

The next day everyone from the village gathered at the bridge to see their saviors leave; they were saddened that they couldn't see the blond hero that saved them, the most devastated person was Inari who never got the chance to apologize to Naruto for what he had said.

As Team 7 slowly walked made their way over the bridge the people started leaving for their homes. As soon as the team reached the end of the bridge and entered the forest they found their blond teammate sitting next to a tree, waiting. He looked up at them and gave them a small nod.

He stood up and walked towards them, they looked at him carefully, entranced by the person before them; a living, breathing angel. "Let's go…" the blond said silently, not wanting to stay around anymore. Kakashi shook himself out of his stupor and nodded, he took the lead with Naruto behind him.

On their way back they ran into Zabuza and Haku once more, however this time there was no battle between them. The missing-nin thanked the blond for what he did on the bridge, he didn't understand why Zabuza was thanking him though, he only did what he was supposed to, kill the demons and close the portal, nothing more and nothing less. Still, he appreciated the thought.

When the man offered his services along with Haku he was forced to refuse however, he couldn't take help from anyone, he couldn't risk anyone's life. This was his own mission; this was what he had to do on his own. He didn't doubt the man's skill, he doubted their luck. The demons would use all sorts of tricks to kill them; he couldn't afford to have people die at demon hands.

However, Zabuza decided to follow Team 7 for a short time stating that he didn't know where exactly to go. For some time he thought that it would be best to join Konoha, but he wasn't sure if he would be accepted and he didn't want to try to escape if they decided to take him in.

As night fell, Zabuza and Haku parted ways with Team 7, heading towards Wind Country, probably to look for work there. As for Team 7, they made camp in the forest. Naruto chose to be the one on guard the whole night, despite his sensei's protests it was him that won. The boy didn't feel like sleeping, he had to think things through.

As the blond looked towards the night sky he felt something out of place. Images of demons flashed before his eyes, images of portals. He closed his eyes and brought his hand to his face, he didn't know what the images meant and at the same time didn't try to understand them. Most likely he would find out sooner or later what they meant he wouldn't like it, he was sure of it.

But, it was on that night that he saw it for the first time. The moon, it wasn't like it used to be, instead of the moon that he grew up to see in the night sky there was a red moon now. His heart stopped for a second, the angel never told him what a red moon meant, the malicious laughter he kept hearing in his head however made him worry. If Kyuubi knew what the moon meant, it was a bad sign.

He vaguely remembered that in his nightmares the moon was always red, he couldn't pay much attention to it, during those nightmares he would always try to run from Kyuubi. He was completely defenseless against him. The boy shivered involuntarily, he brought his knees close to his chest and hugged them, his wings stretched and then wrapped around him as well.

He was afraid, afraid to go back there, afraid to be tormented by the fox. He couldn't ask the angels for help, they knew nothing about the Bijuu, most likely they never had to face anything like this before.

As he looked up at the night sky once more his eyes moved towards the red moon, he couldn't stop staring at it. Suddenly he could hear whispers all around him, he couldn't understand them but he knew who they belonged to. They were taunting him, calling out for him, demanding his head, his blood. He brought his knees closer to him; he had never been this scared before, not even the villagers scared him like this.

From far away Sasuke watched as the blond shivered behind the tree, he watched as he buried his head in his arms and wrapped his wings around himself. The blond was afraid, he could see it, he could sense it and he could hear him sniffing. Yet he didn't know what to do, he didn't know how he could comfort him.

He was a mystery now; they knew absolutely nothing about him. He was no longer the blond idiot they met in the academy; he was no longer the same person they grew up knowing. The change was so sudden, it shocked them, it scared them.

As morning came Kakashi was the first the get up, the first thing he did was check on Naruto. The boy in question was sitting in a tree, looking at the road, it was like he was in some sort of trance. It bothered Kakashi a bit, since he couldn't see his eyes he couldn't read his emotions.

"Naruto." The jounin called out as the boy turned his head towards him. "Everything alright?" he asked and smiled as the blond nodded. "Come down and eat."

Naruto nodded as he jumped down from the tree and landed gracefully on the ground, he walked towards the camp and sat down next to his sensei. The two looked at the sleeping forms of Sasuke and Sakura in silence, Kakashi was wondering if he should wake them up while Naruto was wondering what the two thought about him, if they still considered him a friend.

Being awake all night made the blond think about a lot of things; he realized he never asked his teammates what they thought about him. He was happy when they started getting along, he didn't want to lose that friendship he had gained.

"Naruto…care to explain?" asked Kakashi as the blond stood in complete silence.

"What do you want me to explain?" he inquired as the jounin looked towards him.

"Anything that you can…about yourself, about the demons…about what's happening in the Elemental Countries right now…" he replied seriously.

"Not now, there might be ears listening on us…later…" he said as the jounin sighed and nodded, better late then never.

An hour later Sasuke and Sakura started stirring up, the jounin greeted them with an eye smile and Naruto by raising his hand up. They couldn't see his face at all, even though he was smiling underneath his cowl they couldn't see him.

Kakashi had asked him why he kept the cowl on, he didn't know what answer to give him. It felt like he wasn't allowed to reveal his face to anyone, it felt like he had to keep himself hidden under the cowl, to protect himself. He didn't understand where this feeling came from and strangely, it didn't bother him,

Team 7 ate their food in complete silence, from time to time Sasuke and Sakura would look at the blond as if they were expecting him to say something, but the blond remained silent during the whole ordeal.

"Kakashi…" the blond said once they were done eating. "It's best if you head with Sasuke and Sakura back to Konoha and then come back for me at night." He said as the other three looked at him in complete shock.

"Naruto, I can't leave you here alone…and why can't you come with us?" he asked not understanding the blond's request.

The only answer he gave them was by raising his wings upwards, the three looked at them, fascinated by them. Then they understood why Naruto didn't want to return with them during daylight. People would see him, he didn't want to be seen. For whatever reasons the blond had, he didn't want to be seen by anyone in this form.

"Will you be alright…by yourself?" asked Sakura with concern evident in her voice.

The blond nodded, he had defeated a large army of demons after all. He doubted a pack of bandits or a shinobi would be able to take him down.

"I'll return shortly." Replied Kakashi as he instructed the reminder of his team to pack their stuff and head out.

The blond watched as they left from atop a tree, he could see the Hokage monument in the distance, Konoha was close. He hoped that if any ninja would pass by they wouldn't notice him or if they did, they wouldn't try to get any explanation out of him.

Hours passed and nothing happened, the blond could see traders moving towards the village, he could see ninja's jumping from tree to tree, either leaving or heading back into the village. Strangely, no one noticed him. He was glad, he didn't want to start explaining who he was and what he was doing here.

However, during this whole time the feeling that he was being watched never left him. He couldn't put his finger on it, the fact that he was watched didn't scare him yet it made his brain scream to be on guard no matter what. He was expecting something to attack him, but even as the sun set and the moon rose in the sky nothing happened.

His head snapped up as he felt his sensei approach. Jumping down from the tree he landed in the clearing they made camp and waited. A few seconds later Kakashi appeared in the clearing, he smiled, relieved that the blond was alright. But slowly the smile vanished and a worried look appeared on his face.

"Naruto…did you notice anything strange last night?" he asked seriously. The blond titled his head to the side thinking what the jounin wanted to hear. "I kept hearing something about a red moon in the village today." The jounin said trying to refresh the blond's memory.

It worked, Naruto's eyes widened, people had seen the red moon. He hoped that only those involved with the demons would see it, now he was even more intrigued by the phenomenon.

"Yes…" replied the blond "There was a red moon last night…but I have no idea what it means." He replied calmly as the jounin sighed, he moved to the side and told his pupil to start moving.

The two left the clearing and started making their way towards Konoha.

"You said you would explain…" Kakashi started as the blond nodded.

"I will try and explain what I can…but please, refrain from asking any questions whatsoever…"

"Why is that?" inquired Kakashi "You don't want to answer any other questions?"

The blond shook his head. "Its not that…it's more like…I don't know if I am allowed to tell you all of this in the first place." He confessed to the jounin. "Even I answer to someone…"

Kakashi understood what the blond meant by that, he didn't refer to the Hokage, most likely he was referring to another angel, a leader of sorts. The jounin settled for the answer that the blond gave him and motioned for the blond to start telling him what he could.

With a deep sigh, the blond started. "As you know, all of this happened during graduation, when I stole the forbidden scroll. I took two jutsu's from the very first page. Not even Jijii knew what they did or if there is a way to reverse it…." He paused for a second "…but, I know what they did, I know what I have done. Without knowing I condemned the entire planet to an ancient war between two powers that no mortal can defeat."

"You saw me battling those monsters on the bridge; those are demons, believe it or not. If you haven't guessed by know, their enemy is Heaven itself and the angels…meaning me as well…"

The jounin nodded, this much he had figured out. "It was me that opened the gates of Heaven and Hell when I used those jutsu's. That's all I know about them, they didn't want to tell me anything else. All I know is that I play a very important role in all of this, demons seem to want me dead no matter what, angels want me to close all Hell gates no matter what…its like…I'm a bridge between the worlds, like a …"

"Key." finished Kakashi as he scratched his chin. The blond nodded at him, he was something like that. They told him that the gates opened when he used the scrolls, they told him that he was one of the only ones that can close the gates. He triggered all these events, he was the key that opened the gates and now he needs to be the key that closes them once more.

His eyes widened, they kept calling him Guardian, maybe that is what a Guardian is actually. A being that keeps the gates of Hell and Heaven closed, but why where they created in the first place? Were the gates opened and did demons constantly pour out of them. Did the two sides fight for millions of years until they created a Guardian to keep the gates closed?

He frowned, part of the puzzle was solved, or so he believed. But what he didn't understand was why some of the warriors seemed to hate him? If he was the one that was supposed to keep the gates closed, why hate him? The knight told him that they didn't him, but the title, and something that had happened in the past.

"Naruto?" he heard Kakashi calling out for him. "You spaced out…" he said.

"Yea…I've been thinking about some things." He reassured the jounin.

Looking up a faint smile appeared on his face as the gates of Konoha appeared in front of him. "The guards stationed are ANBU, they already know about your … true form, so there is no need to fear." He said as the blond nodded.

As soon as they reached the gates the three ANBU stationed couldn't help but stare at what they were seeing. Kakashi was walking along side a mythical creature, along side an angel. They watched as the two passed by without saying a word, they stared at his wings in trance, never have they seen anything like it, the light it radiated seemed so calming, so peaceful.

The blond looked down at the ground as they passed the ANBU, he hated when people stared at him for whatever reason. He needed to figure out a way to walk the streets without drawing attention to himself, using a genjutsu wouldn't help anymore. He had to accept what he was and hiding behind the image of his fake self wouldn't help at all.

"Ne, Kakashi, can we visit Jijii?" he asked as the jounin shook his head.

"Hokage-sama said you should rest for the night, he would visit you in the morning." The blond nodded understanding.

He looked towards the sky once more wondering what the future would hold for him now, he was at the end of his path … as a human being. A new journey started for him, even if he liked it or not.

* * *

The next morning we find Naruto in the bathroom, staring at his broken window. Pieces of glass were everywhere, in the sink, on the floor and on his gauntlet. The nightmares haunted him yet again, the angel that "resided" in his mindscape didn't come this time, Kyuubi had free reign over him. He slowly lifted his cowl up and looked at his face, a scar was present on his left cheek, he slowly touched it and then took his hand away, it hurt.

A memory from his nightmare, it seems the damage inflicted in his mindscape was now going to appear in the real world. He was sure now that if he died there, he would die out here as well, that thought scared him beyond believe. If only he had his sword with him, if only he had some sort of weapon on him then he would be able to defend himself, he would be able to stand his ground against the mighty demon. Like this…he was just an easy prey.

A knocked drew him out of his thoughts. "Its open." He shouted as he heard the door open, he looked back at the shattered mirror and lowered his cowl. Stepping out of the bathroom he smiled as he saw the Hokage closing the door. The old man turned towards the blond and smiled at him, saluting the boy.

"Good morning…" the blond replied as he invited the Hokage in his kitchen, the old man accepted the invitation and walked inside. Cups of spilled ramen were everywhere, the majority weren't even touched. The old man frowned, he knew what that meant, the angel told him about it.

He saw the blond cleaning the table of any leftovers and throwing the cups, filled with ramen, in the trash can. He then took a seat at the table, in front of the old man.

"I apologize for the mess…" the blond said bowing his head in front of the old man who was completely surprised by the new, mature Naruto.

"What happened to you?" he asked looking at the blond with sympathy. He never wanted him to end up like this, he never wanted him to have such a harsh life in the first place. It seemed fate had a wicked sense of humor, making the blond's life more and more miserable.

"I accepted the truth." He replied with a low voice. "I understand my purpose and I'm ready to fulfill it."

Sandaime understood what the blond meant, sooner or later he would have had to come to terms with what happened to him, with what was happening to him. He never expected the blond to mature this fast however, he seemed like a completely different person. Gone was the young blond kid who used to pull pranks on everyone and laugh no matter how hard life was.

"Kakashi told me what happened on the mission, I'm sorry I sent you there …"

"Don't be…" he interrupted the Hokage. "…sooner or later I would have had to fight them, I'm glad it happened when it did however." Sandaime nodded at him with a sad smile.

"There is one thing I'd like to request however." Stated the blond making the old man raise an eyebrow "I'd like permission to leave the village…I've receive a mission from higher ups."

Sandaime studied the blond carefully, he sighed knowing that he couldn't stop him. He knew that sooner or later he blond would have to leave the village and fight, with or without help. Somehow, he felt that the blond would most likely fight along side someone all the time, that thought alone calmed his old heart.

"Of course Naruto." He said with a smile. "I will sign you a pass, you can pick it up tonight."

The boy nodded. "Good, I was planning on leaving tonight." He said "Time is precious, the enemy is already on the move and expanding. I can't allow it to continue anymore."

"Then I shall meet you tonight." replied the Sandaime standing up. The blond followed suit and nodded at the old man. He walked him to the door and bid him farewell.

He slowly closed the door and then went into his room. He sat on the bed and looked around thinking on what he should take with him. He already had his wallet, his sword and headband.

Laying down on the bed his thoughts drifted to Satsuki, wondering if she had been waiting for him in the clearing while he was gone all those weeks. He wondered if she was there even now. He wanted to get up and leave, head towards the clearing and check, but, it was still broad daylight, he could waltz out of his room with his wings in plain sight.

He sighted, he would wait until the sun would slowly descend and then leave. First he'd check the clearing, see if she is there and then he'd head over to the Hokage to retrieve his pass.

* * *

As the sun slowly set a figure could be seen jumping from roof top to roof top. Most people would dismiss it thinking it was a ninja, or two. Even if they tried to pay attention to who it was it would prove almost impossible, the figure was moving faster then the human eye could see, at least the untrained eye.

It didn't take long for the blond to reach the clearing; he stopped behind a tree, covering himself with its shadow. He smiled as he saw the girl there, sitting and waiting for him. He wanted to go there and talk to her, but … he didn't want her to see him like this, she would ask questions he could not answer, she would know the truth about him and probably endanger her. He didn't know what could happen and that alone scared him.

As he tried to leave he accidently stepped on a twig. The girl's head snapped up as she heard the twig snap and looked towards the blond's direction. She could vaguely see someone behind the tree.

"Is that you?" she asked carefully "Naruto?"

"Yes…" came his reply a few minutes later, she smiled towards him as she extended her hand, beckoning him to come to her. "I can't…" he said sadly as the girl lowered her had and stood up.

"Why not?" she asked with pain evident in her voice. "I thought…you wanted me as a friend."

"It's not that…" the blond replied "I … I just can't let you see me…" he said as he girl tilted her head to the side in confusion. "Something happened…I'm…I'm not me anymore…"

The girl giggled at his response and started walking towards him. The blond however didn't flinch or try to back away, his heart told him to stay, it told him to let her see him that there would be no repercussions. "No matter what happens…you will always be Naruto." She said in a kind voice that made the blond skip a heart-beat.

As she got closer his form became visible, the blond could read the shock on her face, yet she didn't stop approaching him. When she finally reached him, she stopped a few feet away from him. She looked up at him with a kind smile and gently touched one of his wings.

"Soft." She mumbled as the blond smiled, his heart was beating faster then ever, he didn't know if he was scared or happy, it was an emotion that he couldn't understand, he had never felt it before.

"I…" he started as she looked up "Please…don't ask me what happened … I …"

"I don't want to ask you that." She stopped him "I don't want to know what happened, I told you…you will always be Naruto, no matter what."

Her words brought a bright smile to his face, tears started forming as all his emotions, bottled up, were started to take over. He dropped on his knees, silently crying in joy, joy that someone said that to him, joy that someone would always consider him the same old Naruto no matter how much he would change in appearance.

He felt a pair of arms wrap around him and then he heard her telling him it would be alright, that he can cry all he wants, that she would be there for him. That was all the blond needed, he let everything out, he cried on her shoulder and while he did he confessed how scared he was, how scared he was to close his eyes at night for fear of re-living the same nightmare over and over again.

He confessed how scared he was just thinking that his teammates would reject him now out of fear of what he had become. Hearing everything the blond was saying Satsuki realized that she must be the first person, as a friend, that he had ever opened up like this. She held him tighter to comfort him, there was no one else for him to tell him what he wanted to hear, what he needed to hear.

Several minutes later the blond had stopped crying and was slowly getting better. He hugged the girl and wrapped his wings around her; finally he closed his eyes and enjoyed her warmth. Satsuki blushed at the contact, she looked at his wings, she felt the feathers gently touching her face, it was calming, it seemed like they slowly calmed her mind.

She started thinking about the past and no matter how hard that always was, no matter how hard it was to relieve that night all the time, this time, it didn't hurt anymore. In his hands, in his embrace, she felt at peace, she felt happy. She slowly pushed herself away and looked at the blond, she could vaguely see his deep blue eyes behind the cowl, he was looking directly at her eyes.

The next few minutes neither of them knew what exactly had happened, at first they were staring at each other, it felt like they were getting closer to each other and then it happened. They kissed. Naruto's eyes were wide open at the contact, he didn't know what he had done or why he did it, but slowly, he closed his eyes and deepened the kiss.

His eyes then snapped open as images flooded his head, images of the Uchiha clan, an elderly man giving orders and hitting … him? Scowling at him? Telling him that he was nothing for the clan that he never wanted a daughter? Then he saw the massacre, he saw Itachi, the one that massacred the entire clan … he saw himself in the academy, scowling at … Satsuki?

He pushed away from her as he looked in shock, he didn't understand what it all meant. Satsuki looked at him confused and then gasped realizing she had kissed him.

"I'm sorry…" she said moving away "I didn't know what I was doing…" she raised her voice unconsciously as she stood up and ran away leaving a shocked Naruto behind.

* * *

"Where will you head now?" the Sandaime asked as he looked at the blond who was studying the pass he had handed him.

"Lightning Country." Replied the blond making the old man raise an eyebrow wondering where exactly in Lightning Country he would go.

"Do you want me to give you a paper requesting clearance to enter Kumo?" he asked as the blond shook his head.

"No, I'm not going to Kumo, only bordering towns for my mission." He replied as the Sandaime nodded. "One more thing…" the blond said "…do you know a girl named Satsuki?" he asked curiously.

"That depends, what's her family or clan name?" he asked.

"I … don't know that, she never said what it is…" he said with a sheepish chuckle making the Sandaime smile, the blond was different from this morning, he seemed happier. Probably that girl had something to do with it.

"Describe her then…" he said as he brought his hands up to his chin.

The blond then proceeded to describe her, he was excited like a little kid that received the toy he wanted for Christmas, it made the old man chuckle. He was surprised that all of a sudden he considered her the most beautiful girl he had ever seen, he really needed to find this girl and thank her.

"Alright, I will look into it, but why do you want me to find her?" he asked as the blond scratched the back of his head.

"Tell her that I left the village for a little while on a personal matter and that…I hope I didn't offend her tonight…" he said as the old man smiled and reassured him that he would do just that.

The blond grinned and walked out of the room leaving the Hokage alone.

* * *

**A/N: No, no, no …. Well … I guess I could … yea I will, I apologize for not updating in such a long time. I've debated if I would drop Naruto for good but I can't as long as I keep getting ideas. I also apologize if the chapter is not up to standard, I'm a bit rusty....  
**

**During the months I haven't updated however I started writing my own original story, I will most likely upload it here on FF(dot)net and I hope you guys will like it. **

**Also, this is the RAW chapter, very little grammar check. I will need to look for my beta and hope he is still willing to help me.**

**Another thing, please look up the author **_**Grumpywinter**_** and read his story called **_**Ninjas of the Dead**_** … it's a crossover between Naruto and Highschool of the Dead. I strongly recommend you read Highschool of the Dead if you haven't already, you can find it posted up on **_**mangafox**_**. Also, if anyone is interested, look up a anime called 11eyes and Tower of Druaga (Shield of Uruk and Sword of Uruku, if I remember right, Shield is season 1 – also, don't mind episode 1, its mostly a parody episode)**


	7. Undead night I

**The Archangel – Undead night (I)**

"_How could you?" an angel shouted towards another; both of them were in a field filled with the corpses of both demons and angels. _

_He grinned towards her as he slowly turned to face her. She took a step back in fright while gazing upon his black wings. "They deserved it, they all did!" he shouted in glee as the sky was once again illuminated by the thunders. _

"_No…" she said weakly taking several steps back and shaking her head. "…its not true…" the angel grinned towards her as he slowly started making his way towards her, each drop of blood falling from his sword scorched the ground as it touched it. _

"_Stay away…" she whispered "…stay away from me…" she said again as her eyes started tearing up._

_However, the angel didn't stop; he slowly kept walking towards her. "No!" she shouted as the angel placed his hand on her shoulder, her eyes snapped open as she looked up, her eyes making contact with his. _

"_Why are you so afraid?" he asked with a grin as she remained silent, still trembling under his gaze. "Are you afraid you will meet the same fate as them?" he whispered into her ear while pushing her up against a tree. _

"_Please …" she begged trembling, however, his only response was a soft, yet malicious chuckle. _

"_Oh I love that word…" he whispered with glee "It makes me…want you to kill you more…" he told her as he plunged his sword into her chest making her gasp for air. "I wonder how your sister will take it." _

_Tears overflowed from her eyes as she thought what the madman might do to her sister, as she thought that she once used to love the monster before her. She knew he would not spare her; he had already succumbed to the darkness and lust for blood to even hear her words. _

"_I suggest you answer me when I talk to you!" the fallen angel yelled at her as he pulled the sword out and stabbed her once more. "You do want to live…don't you?" he asked with a smile as he gave her a peck on the lips._

"_You…monster…" she rasped out as the angel grinned and grabbed her by the throat, slowly chocking her. _

"_I am…and I love it!" he replied with glee as he cut her throat and impaled her body on a nearby pike. As the life was slowly leaving her eyes he left her with a few words. "I'll prepare you for your sister…my love."_

* * *

A pair of eyes watched a small caravan as it was making its way on the old road leading from Fire Country towards Lighting Country. The caravan was guarded by fifty armed men, it seemed like it was carrying some important merchandise, either that or the man who hired them was incredibly rich; however, that wasn't what interested him. A few hours ago, down the road, he ran into what looked like a battlefield. Corpses were littered everywhere, weapons discarded on the ground, yet he was sure that wasn't the work of demons. There was no demonic presence near the corpses.

It was most likely bandits; the old Hokage warned him that these outlaws loved to prey on the caravans traveling between Fire and Lightning country. It didn't matter too much for him, considering they were bandits they wouldn't stand a chance against him if he would engage them. However, it was pretty interesting how often bandits seemed to attack caravans on this road. Maybe it was due to the fact that the borders of the two countries weren't next to each other; there was quite a large portion of land "unclaimed" by shinobi. With no rules to hold them down and little protection, bandits had fun pillaging caravans.

Looking one last time at the caravan the blond nodded to himself and turned his attention away. He picked up the pace, planning on reaching Yasaku, the first major trading hub, by morning. The enemy had a lot of time until now to "settle in" and start ravaging the city. Though he was surprised he didn't hear any news about it, you'd think that if people would randomly start disappearing or dying the news about it would spread like wild-fire…like it normally does.

People loved to gossip, it was a fact. Give them a rumor and they will alter it and then keep on spreading it. It was pretty scary, but then again it was the nature of humans to blend reality as they see it, with their own eyes.

In a way it was similar to what demons did, however, demons had the power to actually twist reality and trick the weak-minded ones. He wasn't going to let himself get tricked however; he had a job to do and to do that he needed to pay attention to even the smallest detail.

As he kept jumping from tree to tree his mind drifted to the events from last night. He unconsciously brought his hand up to his lips as his mind drifted to the girl he shared his "first" real kiss. However, what happened during that time was still puzzling the blond. For starters, he didn't understand why a girl would fall for him; everyone had said that him being a dead-last, prankster and a no-name wouldn't attract any kind of attention from the female population.

Then again, that was debatable. He hadn't pulled a prank for a month if he was right, he wasn't smiling as often as he would have…well not smiling, but grinning like a madman as he used to. Thinking about it, he loved doing it just to piss of people. He was maturing, ever since the little talk with the angel in the temple he knew that he couldn't stick to his old life anymore, he had to accept it and he did so. So he was no longer a prankster or immature person, he grinned to himself a little.

As for dead-last, even that was debatable all of a sudden. He would have loved to brag to his teammates how he took down an army of demons, but he couldn't do that. It was his job after all, like it's a ninja's job to finish a mission, most of the times it didn't matter how you finished your mission as long as it was done.

His career as a ninja of Konoha had been short, he didn't have the heart to tell the old man, but he was considering giving back the headband. He couldn't be part of team 7; he couldn't be a ninja serving under Konoha. His tasks would always take him outside of Fire Country and he even had a feeling it would take him outside of the Elemental Countries. The council would never accept that, he had a strange feeling they wouldn't like the idea one bit.

Just thinking of the council made the blond sigh in annoyance and made him wonder if Sarutobi was having a bad time dealing with them because of him. He had to cover why he left, to feed them some sort of lie so that they wouldn't send hunter-nin's after him to bring him back…he was after all the holder of the great demon, Kyuubi.

They probably hated his guts; he wasn't sure about that, he just had a hunch. After all, if they didn't hate him they would have helped him in some way when he was little, or at least that's what he thought. If he was in their place, he wasn't sure, but maybe he would have helped the one that held a demon inside of him. I mean, what would happen if the holder suddenly snapped and decided to unleash the demon upon the village? Who would seal it then?

He shook his head; he was getting off-track with his thoughts. He was thinking of Satsuki to begin with, strange that his thoughts drifted away so much. His eyes widened as he remembered those strange flashes he had with the Uchiha clan. What could they have meant? He was sure all of them were from the past, after all he did see Itachi kill the clan through…someone's eyes. Could it be that she was an Uchiha as well? Could it be that Sasuke wasn't the only survivor of the massacre?

But then again, has he ever met her in the academy before? In those strange flashes he remembered scowling at someone, the only person he ever hated and scowled at was Sasuke himself and that was after the massacre. The boy had become a cold douche, it was annoying seeing him with that smirk all the time, or brooding away in the corner. While he had never lost anyone, or anything, he never had things to begin with.

He couldn't compare his life with his; they both shared a pain, a different one at that. One experienced the pain of loss, the other the pain of loneliness. Thinking about it, could that actually mean that Satsuki was none other than Sasuke? His eyes widened for a second before chuckling to himself, there was no way that they were one and the same person. One of them was a brooding bastard out to get his brothers head, while the other was a charming person. Not even their eyes matched, sure they had the same color but Satsuki's eyes were more … joyous then Sasuke's.

"_**Well, well…what are we thinking about?"**_ he heard the demon call out and stopped thinking all together. He scowled, he hated that fox so much, more then anything in the world.

"_Go back in your cage demon!" _the blond shouted in his mind, trying to push back the fox's presence.

"_**Hahaha…you are actually ordering me around?"**_ the demon shouted.

Concentrating, the blond managed to push the demon back into the depths of his mind. He sighed in relief as he could no longer feel his presence and hear his voice. He was more then sure Kyuubi would have eventually tried to pull him inside his mindscape and torment him more, it happened too often for his own liking.

"Hey, did you hear the news?" the blond stopped abruptly in a nearby tree concealing his presence. He looked down at a group of bandits talking with each other.

"What news?" asked one of them with a bored tone.

"There's something going on in Lighting Country." This sparked the blond's attention, there was finally some news regarding that place. "Apparently the Raikage has closed the gates to Kumo and closed the borders to Lighting Country."

"Oh?" another bandit inquired now interested by the news. "What happened?"

The first one shrugged. "Don't know, rumor has it the country's been invaded." He told them "Some say that they see monsters at night…"

That was all that the blond needed to hear, he sped towards Lightning country intending on reaching it in the next few hours.

* * *

"Oh man…it's so cold…" a ninja complained while sitting next to a bonfire. It was dark outside, the moon was blocked by dark clouds, it had been like this for the past several days.

"Quit complaining…" his partner snapped "Pay attention to the road." He ordered as he turned to look towards the road.

"Tch…why are we out here again?" the first one asked annoyed.

"Raikage's order, ever since those attacks on Yasaku…"

"But that's the point!" the first one interrupted "Apart from merchants leaving no one entered Lighting Country in the past days…and the so called _monsters_ … pfah…I doubt they even exist." He argued.

His partner sighed in annoyance. "Raikage orders, we obey, that simple…alright?" he asked with a glare silencing his partner.

Ever since those merchants and villagers from Yasaku came barging in the Raikage tower demanding protecting, offering money to protect their city, things have taken a strange turn. They claimed monsters attacked them at night, that the city guards were almost gone, people vanishing from their homes, from within their beds.

The Raikage ordered an investigation, bodies were found, bodies of villagers and town guards in the forest. He didn't want to believe there were actually monsters, he dismissed it as attacks from wild life but when they came back he realized how serious it. He closed the borders at first stationing ninja's there to prevent anyone from entering…then he closed Kumo's gates. Outside of Kumo were camps of refugees, all begging the ninja's to let them inside, to shelter them, yet none answered to their pleas.

Suddenly both ninja's felt a presence, they stood up and drew their swords. They looked at each other and nodded, one of the turned to look at the source of the presence. "Come out, we know you are there!" he shouted. The second ninja sent a signal to the nearby team to move in position, if this was just a merchant there would be no problem, bandits as well. However, if it was a ninja or … a monster … the second team would back them up.

However, what appeared before them, it was nothing they had expected.

"I apologize…" the figure said calmly as he gently glided towards the ground, his wings illuminating the area around him. They took a step back in shock, there was no way this was real, they pinched themselves to be sure, one of them even slapped himself several times. Yet the angel did not vanish.

Naruto tilted his head to the side in confusion. "I am real, if you were thinking otherwise." He said calmly "If you would excuse me, I have business to attend to." The blond said as he started walking away from them.

"H-h-halt!" one of the ninja's shouted, barely. "Lighting country is … closed … to all outsiders." He stuttered, his eyes still on the angel.

The angel turned his head slightly towards him. "I know." He replied as he suddenly vanished in a bright light leaving the two ninjas rooted in place.

* * *

Time was ticking; he could feel a large concentration of demons amassing in one location, probably going to finish off the city. He could no longer be careful, if people saw him then let them see him, he had to reach the city no matter what. He was glad he stopped back at that checkpoint, even if just for a second. He was tired from all the running and flying, he hoped that he would be able to defeat the demon army and close at least one portal tonight before he collapsed from exhaustion.

He was surprised the ninja's from the checkpoint weren't following him, maybe the impression he left was just too much for the poor men to handle. His eyes widened for a second as he looked at the headband, still tied to his arm. He stopped yet again and moved his hand towards it, untying it and placing it inside his robe. He didn't need them to know he was affiliated with Konoha, the last thing he needed was a bunch of angry letters sent by the Raikage towards the old man demanding an explanation.

The council wouldn't be pleased as well and would make his work harder if they tried to hold him down. Having ninja's chasing after him as he tries to save as many people from the demon onslaught wasn't the best choice one could make and it was definitely not one that he wanted. He needed room to operate; being under constant watch by someone wouldn't help at all.

As he reached the outskirts of the city he stopped on the nearby hill to asses the situation. A quarter of the city was in flames, screams of pain echoes from within the city. Gripping the swords hilt, the blond rushed into the city.

The city was in chaos, people were running in fear from the attacking army, the city guards were doing their best to protect everyone but the enemy outnumbered them greatly. And to make matters worse, fighting undead wasn't what they had planned, ever.

Skeletons roamed the streets; ghosts would appear from nowhere dragging unsuspecting victims away, zombies devoured you on the spot if they managed to grab you, turning you into one of them in a matter of seconds.

"Hold the line!" a samurai shouted towards fifty militiamen as they were desperately fighting a pack of skeletons. Not too far away they could see a larger version of the skeletons slowly making its way towards them. He gulped thinking they would have to hold out against that beast.

The howl of wolves suddenly echoed in the night, out of nowhere a wolf jumped on a militiaman ripping his throat in one go, the samurai's eyes widened in fight as he gazed upon the wolf. Part of its fur and flesh were missing, its eyes glowed red like a demons, the stench of rotting flesh made him sick.

He snapped back to his senses as he unsheathed his katana and blocked a sword. He turned around facing the skeleton that managed to break through the lines; he ducked under its sloppy attack and cut through it. Bones dropped on the ground as the sword fell next to them. The samurai turned his attention back to the militiamen; one by one they were falling to the undead. The skeletons might not be that good with a weapon, but in masses they posed a serious threat.

A shiver suddenly ran through his spine as he suddenly felt getting colder and colder. He looked down and his eyes widened as he saw his feet were encased in a block of ice. Looking behind his breath stopped as he saw a ghost there, grinning at him, its hands touching his back. He tried to turn around and swipe the undead, but he found his hands incased in ice as well.

He felt the weight of the blocks pulling his arms, he felt like they were ripping his arms. He screamed in pain as he closed his eyes. And then, he felt a cold blade pierce his chest. He coughed; he could feel himself drowning in his own blood. The ghost watched in glee as the human before it was suffocating, his own blood was freezing in his throat. As the samurai's eyes rolled back in his head, the ghost pulled its sword out of his body and grinned in satisfaction.

Its eyes suddenly widened as it felt a burning sensation. It didn't even get the chance to turn around and see who managed to stab it, flames erupted around it killing it and leaving nothing behind. The blond lowered his sword and looked at the dead body of the samurai; he walked next to the corpse and turned it around. He closed the man's eyes before standing up and looking at the approaching army. All humans were dead; they all fell to the undead army.

He kneeled and took a deep breath, he touched the ground and multiple seals appeared around him. Moments later portals opened, fifty knights stepped out of the portals, ten of them on horses. They all carried swords, maces, axes and shields. Slowly, the blond stood up and looked at the army.

"_Your orders my lord."_ A knight said bowing his head slightly.

"I will deal with them; you guys head into the city, find survivors and rescue them." He ordered as the knights saluted and turned around, making their way into the city to search for survivors.

The angel turned his attention towards the approaching army, crouching slightly and moving the blade behind him he concentrated his energy on the sword until it burst into flames. He then swiped with his sword towards the approaching army releasing all the energy he concentrated in the sword. A wall of flame burst out of it and collided with the undead army burning down all foes that stood in its way.

He watched as they dropped on the ground, lifeless once more, one hundred of them defeated with a single attack. He grinned, even though he was completely exhausted and he used up a lot of energy with that attack, he had to use it. His goal was to get to the portal as fast as possible and close it; he would also need to defeat the leader of the horde.

His eyes rested on the large skeleton that stood in the back of the army, it didn't move at all, it just stood there watching him. The blond was certain that skeleton was the leader.

His eyes widened as he vanished from his spot, a sword cut the air where he used to stand. The ghost turned around and looked for the blond, it looked at the rooftops, he wasn't there. It looked around, in nearby alleys, but he wasn't there.

"Behind you." The blond whispered as he plunged his sword into the ghost igniting it.

With a freighting howl, the ghost disintegrated into thin air.

"_**Impressive…"**_the blond spun around to the source of the whisper coming face to face with another ghost, this one however looked different. While the others had the shape of human beings in armor this one had a robe underneath its armor, a hood over its face and a crown on top of its ghostly head.

"_**To think you could kill my wraiths so easily…"**_ it murmured as it vanished from sight and appeared a few steps away.

"_**Kill him…"**_the wraith commanded as it vanished into thin air. _**"…kill him…"**_

Thinking fast, the blond brought his hands to his chest and lowered his head, he concentrated and then moved his arms to the side. He was suddenly enveloped in a blue sphere, a second later it exploded, blue flames raced from him in a circle. Howls echoed around him as more then twenty wraiths were caught in his attack.

The sounds of battle suddenly ceased, he looked around wondering what happened. A horn echoed in the night as the blond brought his left hand in front of him, a shield appearing in his hand. He bent backwards and raised the shield; a rain of arrows suddenly fell from the sky, some hitting the shield, others hitting the ground around him.

As the last arrow touched the ground the blond vanished from his spot only to reappear moments later in front of a skeleton with his sword raised. Before the undead could react he crushed its head and bashed another one with his shield. He turned around blocking a sword and pushing the skeleton away. Ducking under another attack the blond swiped the skeletons legs making it fall on its back, he then plunged his sword into its head, igniting it.

More and more skeletons appeared, it seemed like they were all concentrating on him. He turned around blocking another attack and slammed the shield into his enemy; he then grabbed the skeleton and turned it round. He used it as a shield as ten swords descended upon his "prisoner" cracking its skull. His gauntlet glowed for a second as the blond threw the body towards the masses. Seconds later the body exploded creating a large circle of flames.

He jumped in the middle of the flames and moved his left hand to the side and bowed his head. The fires would protect him until he finished the next attack. Opening his eyes the blond kneeled and punched the ground, rays of light started shooting from the sky towards him and as they hit his body they started multiplying, creating seven large _shurikens_ that moved out of his body in a circle.

Each time one of them hit a skeleton it exploded disintegrating it and leaving nothing behind; the wraiths didn't fare any better, like the skeletons they too vanished when the _shurikens _hit them.

As the last ray of light touched the blond he stood up and summoned his shield once more. He took a defensive position and waited. The skeleton army moved towards him once more, the flames around him slowly dying.

"**Attack!"** the massive skeleton commanded as the entire army charged forward, the sky suddenly cleared making the red moon visible. The skeletons eyes glowed bright red for a second as a red aura appeared around them. This was not a good sign in Naruto's mind, it seemed like the moon was strengthening them

The blond looked towards the massive skeleton; he would need to take it down. His eyes then moved towards the closest skeleton and as it leaped in the air with its sword ready to strike, the blond vanished from his spot reappearing behind the skeleton moments later. The skeleton fell on the ground, its bones shattering.

The horn sounded once more as the blond charged into the skeleton army, a hail of arrows dropped from the sky taking down skeletons, three of them hitting the blond. He grit his teeth as the pain moved through his body. As he cut through the last skeleton he raised his shield up and blocked another hail of arrows, he then jumped in the air avoiding a sword.

He stood there for several seconds looking down at the undead army, if he had a bow and arrows he would use them, it was an opportune moment. His eyes moved towards the skeleton archers, he flew backwards avoiding an attack from them. Gritting his teeth the blond flew forward towards the massive skeleton, intending on ignoring the rest of them. He hoped that if he would take down the large one the others would crumble.

As he got close to the behemoth, he moved his sword to the side and channeled energy in the blade. However, the large skeleton reacted faster; it grabbed the blond in mid air with great speed, surprising the blond that a sack of bones could move so fast. He grit his teeth in pain as the skeleton attempted to squash him in its hands. It settled for throwing the angel into nearby buildings however.

He crashed through several buildings, making one of them crumble. He groaned, everything around him was spinning. Trying to sit up proved to be in vain, his entire body hurt. He underestimated the enemy and he was paying for it. The boy could hear footsteps, he took his sword and raised it in front of him, everything was blurry but he knew that the thing in front of him was a skeleton.

He grit his teeth in anger as he tried to push himself up again. The skeleton raised its sword to strike but before it could a figure cut its head of and kicked the body away; the sword fell on the ground.

"_My lord, are you alright?"_ the blond heard the knight question; he nodded as he sighed in relief, glad that the knights had returned.

"_We took the liberty of engaging the enemy; we will create a path towards the large abomination."_ The night reported as it helped the blond back on his feet.

"Good." He replied. The boy shook his head and his wings; he then stretched them, a wave of pain moved through his body making him cringe. He won't be flying for some time.

"Have you ever faced one before?" the blond asked as he looked down towards the battlefield.

The knight looked at the massive skeleton in silence, after a few moments it replied. _"There are multiple ways of taking it down, as you saw an attack like the one you tried won't work. The best solution is to destroy its feet."_

Naruto raised an eyebrow at that. _"Due to its size, it has a hard time hitting…smaller targets that attack from below. However, it will try to … squish you."_

He grinned at that, dodging a large pair of legs while trying to chop them off. Seemed simple enough. "Try to keep his minions off me while I chop its legs." The blond ordered as the knight bowed. "Also, do you have any idea where the portal might be?"

"_Just one…right underneath it."_ The knight replied as it pointed towards the skeleton. _"From what I remember, it first sends out its troops, then it drags itself out of the portal. They then stand there, guarding it, allowing more to come out."_

He nodded as he gripped the swords hilt and jumped down on the ground, he turned towards the undead army. His knights were holding them off, slowly clearing a way towards the behemoth. The boy charged forward, he summoned his shield and crashed into the masses bashing the skeletons out of his way.

As he hit a skeleton he raised his shield upwards, lifting the skeleton up in the process. His enemy crashed behind him, a knight shattering its skull under his feet.

The sound of steel hitting steel resonated throughout the entire night, screams of pain could be heard from time to time as a knight would fall to the hail of arrows. To make matters worse, the undead leader summoned skeleton mages, their attacks made it even harder for Naruto and his knights to reach the behemoth. They had to dodge fireballs, lighting strikes or large cones of ice.

They didn't know for how long they had been fighting, the blond was half conscious by now; he had depleted all his reserves. The little reserves he had left he would need them for closing the portal and defeating the behemoth. He didn't expect this, the enemy proved stronger, more organized then the ones he faced on the bridge. The first batch of skeletons they had dispatched proved too easy, however, the more they cut the stronger the enemy got.

"_Behind you!"_ a knight shouted as the blond ducked under a sword and kicked the skeleton away.

"Keep pushing!" he ordered.

Out of the fifty knights he summoned only ten remained and they were at their limits too. He grit his teeth, he couldn't fail now, if he left the portal opened too long the behemoth could summon more and more skeletons, more portals would open and Lighting Country would fall under the demon army.

Gripping the swords hilt the blond moved his shield in front of him and charged forward, the knights did the same. They bashed the skeletons out of their way; they used their sword to cut down skeletons that they couldn't throw away with their shields. Little by little they were making progress, reaching the large behemoth.

"_Duck!"_ a knight shouted in fear as they all complied, a large sword suddenly flew above their heads cutting down a quarter of the skeleton army. The gush of wind nearly blew the blond away. He looked up at the behemoth as it was raising its sword from the ground.

"_My lord, now is the time to strike!" _he heard another knight shout. He nodded and stood up; he made haste towards the behemoth. The blond jumped to the side avoiding the skeletons large foot. He watched in horror as the skeleton raised its foot leaving a massive whole where it once stood.

The boy shook his head as he channeled energy into his sword; he jumped on the foot and swiped the behemoths leg. The large skeleton howled as it tried to get the blond of its foot. The blond plunged his sword into the behemoths leg and channeled all his energy into it, his sword burst into flames as they traveled upwards through the massive bone.

The skeleton moved to the sides, colliding with buildings and destroying them. It was trying to get rid of the blond; it could feel its leg melting away. Its efforts proved futile as the blond pulled his sword out of the bone and struck it. The bone cracked, it shattered and the massive skeleton lost balance. It crashed on top of several buildings burying the blond with it.

The knights took a step back and covered their faces as smoke raised from the debris. As the smoke slowly started settling down they ran towards the downed behemoth to search for the boy. As they got closer they could see the blond standing on top of the behemoths head with his sword plunged into its skull and kneeling down.

Naruto was out of breath, sweat and blood dripped on the behemoths skull from his face as he pushed the sword deeper in the skeletons head making it howl in pain. His sword caught fire once more igniting the behemoth. Its howls echoed in the night and as it slowly died its army moved away, retreating. The knights watched as the skeletons ran out of the city, probably towards the next portal and the second leader of the undead army.

The angel stood up from the ruble, gasping for air. He rummaged through his pockets looking for one of the pills the old man gave him.

"_You wont need them."_ A knight said as the blond pulled out one of the pills, he turned towards the knight with a questioning look. _"You no longer posses 'chakra' … or whatever you call it....your energy will replenish after a nights rest."_ The knight stated as the blond looked down at the pill.

"Are you certain?" he asked looking back at the knight as the rest of them joined him. The knight nodded.

Naruto smiled slightly. _"The Commander told us that ninjas die if their chakra reserves deplete, that is not the case with you anymore. Since you no longer posses chakra you will no longer die if you deplete your reserves."_

He was glad to hear that, the thought of dying from chakra depletion always scared him. He might have had abnormal quantity of chakra due to Kyuubi, but even that would have to deplete sooner or later.

"_My lord…"_ he heard one of the knights calling him, he looked in his direction and saw him pointing towards the area where the behemoth stood. There was a massive crater and a portal inside of it. With great effort, the blond stood up and grabbed his sword; he slowly made his way towards the portal.

He looked towards the horizon, he could see the retreating forces. There was one more portal and it was guarded by that wraith, somehow, he knew that the next fight would be even harder. It took them an entire knight to defeat this army; the next one will be even harder. He realized that he needed new tactics, he needed to plan ahead what he was going to do in a battle, he just rushed in this one, without thinking at all.

"_My lord, we shall we do with this one?"_ he heard a knight question; he slightly turned his head towards the knight who was holding a skeleton down. The skeleton was struggling under the man's grip.

"Tie it…I have a plan." The blond replied as the knight nodded and proceeded to do as it was told.

* * *

The Raikage was not having a good week, everything was going downhill. He had people at Kumogakure's gates pleading for refuge, he had the Daimyo of Lighting Country demanding that he should send out more ninjas to defend the villages. However, every time he did it there was nothing, no beasts, no bandits, no nuke-nins and especially…no monsters as they all seemed to claim.

But today, was the worst day yet. At the break of dawn a large number of people from Yasaku came barging at the village's gate pleading them to let them in, to save them from the monsters. His ninjas reported that a large number of them were covered in blood, they had wounded with them and dead militiamen as well. Now he didn't know what to think, if Yasaku was truly attacked by … monsters, then what would be the best course of action?

He scoffed, clearing his mind. There was no way that monsters attacked the city, most likely a band of nuke-nins that cast a genjutsu on the poor saps to make them believe "monsters" had attacked the city. But that would mean that the one that casted the genjutsu was incredibly powerful if he was able to trick the entire city into believing that.

The Raikage looked away from the window towards the three ninja in the room, they had arrived a few moments ago stating that a strange man was requesting and audience with him.

"Yugito, Bee!" the Raikage shouted as two ninja appeared in the room bowing at the man "Follow me." He ordered as the replied with a _'yes'_ in perfect unison.

On the way to the gates he thought about many things, he thought about the situation in Lighting Country, he thought if it was a good idea to close the borders and then he thought if everything that was happening now was an act of aggression from another hidden village. But then he thought about the man that desired an audience with him, he wondered what he was, who he was.

The way his ninja described him, he had never heard of someone wearing that type of armor before, not even the samurai in the land of Iron were dressed like that and he was certain they wouldn't come here for a meeting. They were neutral with all countries, they didn't need ninjas to solve their problems, they could do that themselves.

When he reached the gate he looked at the massive structure. Looking back at his guards he nodded at them and jumped on top of the gate. They looked down at the road, people from nearby villages and cities had made camp in front of it, they wouldn't quit, they still wanted entrance into the hidden village.

His eyes then moved to a strange figure. A man clad in a strange armor kneeling in front of the gate with his sword in front of him, in the ground. A ninja whispered to him that this was the man that wished and audience with him. The Raikage looked down at the man once more, who was he? What did he want? He cleared his throat trying to grab his attention.

"_I thank you for allowing me to speak with you lord Raikage."_ The man said in a hollow voice sending shivers down everyone's spine. The Raikage looked at his ninja with a questioning gaze, however before the man could reply the knight started talking once more.

"_You must wonder why I sound like this…that is something I cannot answer at the moment however."_ He stated apologetically as the kage turned to face him once more.

"What is it that you wished to discuss?" he questioned as the knight stood up and sheathed his sword. Unlike the samurais, it seemed like this man had his sheath on his back as he moved his sword on his back and then removed his hand, without holding the sword. The hilt could be seen on his back. And then, there was that strange shield he had in his hand, he had never seen anything like it before.

"_My master desires to speak with you."_ The kage raised an eyebrow, so this man was just a messenger?

"Why didn't your master come to me directly then?" he asked as the man looked up at him.

"_My lord had some trouble on the way, he sent me here to bring this matter to your attention." _The knight replied humbly as the kage turned towards his ninja to discuss the matter.

"Very well…when will your master arrive?" asked the kage.

"_Any moment now."_ Was the replied as the knight took a few steps back and took his shield of his hand; he plucked it into the ground and stood behind it, both hands on the shield.

Any attempts to talk with the man seemed futile; the man stood silent and ignored any questions that they asked. It was annoying to say at least, they wanted to know more about the man and about his master. They desired to know who he was, where he came from and most importantly, if he wasn't from Lighting Country how in God's name did he manage to enter the country seeing as they closed down all borders and had ninja's station everywhere to make sure no one entered.

Several minutes passed and the Raikage was starting to lose his patience, he was about to turn around and leave until he heard the people outside gasp. He looked down the road and his eyes widened. There were nine more men like the one before him walking towards the gate in a line and between them was an angel. He rubbed his eyes to make sure that what he was seeing was the truth, he pinched himself, he even channeled chakra and tried dispelling the genjutsu, yet the angel was still there, still walking towards the gates.

"_Master has arrived."_ The knight stated as the kage's eyes widened at that.

As the angel drew closer they could see his outfit better. Half of his cowl was covered in blood, his robe was also covered in blood and his right wing seemed to be bleeding. His feathers were bloody red and blood dripped from them. They noticed the way he walked, he seemed exhausted, he was struggling from tripping over his own feet.

As the angel reached the man he stopped and nodded at him. The knight took his shield out of the ground and stepped next to the angel who looked up at the kage and his ninja. They stood in silence looking at each other; the blond looked directly in the man's eyes. Even though the kage could not see his eyes he knew that the angel was staring directly into his.

"Greetings lord Raikage." The angel started with a small bow as the kage mimicked.

"Greetings to you too….angel…" he said uncertain. The angel grinned a bit at that.

"If it's not too much to ask, I'd like to talk with you in private regarding your city…Yasaku." He stated as the kage's eyes narrowed, what could the angel desire with the village or wish to talk about?

"And what is it that you wish to talk about pray tell me?" he asked as the angel turned to one of his men and nodded at him. They watched as one of the knights stepped forward, he was dragging a bag behind him. The knight threw the bag in front of him, something moved inside, this grabbed everyone's attention.

"As you know, your people…" the angel stated moving his hand towards the refugees "…have been telling you that monsters attack them at night, I'm sure you already know that Yasaku fell last night."

The kage's eyes narrowed as he looked at the angel with sharp eyes. "How do you know that?" he inquired as the angel smiled under his hood.

"I was there." He replied as the knight took the bag off whatever was inside revealing a struggling skeleton to everyone. The refugees all shouted in fear, shouting that it was one of the monsters that attacked them, that killed their families and friends.

The kage and his ninja stood rooted in place looking at the skeleton as it struggled with its bindings trying to break free. The angel stepped forward and grabbed the skeleton by its skull, lifting it up in the air.

"This … is one of the things that haunt your lands, your cities, your people." He stated as a man suddenly shouted out that what the angel was saying is true.

"_We fought last night…all night…trying to save Yasaku."_ One of the knights stated.

"I remember them!" a man shouted all of sudden "One of them protected me and my family from those…those…monsters!" he shouted pointing towards the struggling skeleton.

"Lord Raikage, I desire to speak with you regarding this matter." The blond stated as he crushed the skeletons head, its bones dropping on the ground lifelessly.

"What do you wish to speak?" the kage asked as the blond took a step forward.

"A plan to crush the remaining … monsters …" the blond stated as silence fell suddenly fell over the entire area.

It took a few minutes for the Raikage to understand what the angel wanted, then he realized what this could mean. The possibilities of having a divine being fight along side him and his ninja. And then it struck him, what the refugees kept telling was true, the skeleton a few moments ago was living proof of it. However, why would he need an angels help regarding the matter?

"If what you say is true…" the kage started "…and … skeletons are harassing the people, then why would we need your help in defeating them?" he asked, he didn't want push the angel out of it, but he doubted that the skeletons were the only problem, he needed to know more before he could let the angel inside.

"Unless you know how to kill a … ghost … for the lack of better words, I strongly suggest we work together." The angel replied making everyone take a step back in shock, fighting ghosts? Killing ghosts? No, they were sure they didn't know how to do that, in fact, they had never seen one, they didn't even know it was real, they doubted him.

However, the skeleton from before was real, they tried to dispel the genjutsu, if a Kage couldn't do it then it was most certainly not a genjutsu. That would mean, that the ghosts the angel talked about were real as well. The Raikage shook his head, how could he doubt an angel? The power radiating from the being in front of him was inhumane, he couldn't feel a trace of chakra coming from him, it was something more potent, wilder. There was no way that the angel was a fake or that it would lie.

"I apologize, please come in." the kage said as he ordered the ninjas to open the gates. The blond nodded towards his knights as they moved around him and started walking into the hidden village.

* * *

Naruto watched as his kings prepared the catapults in one of Kumo's training grounds. The meeting with the Raikage was more successful then he would have ever hoped. He explained to the man as much as he could, the man in turn promising to keep all that he learned to himself. While he and his men prepared the catapults the Raikage agreed to send out army and secure the area around the city they would attack.

The kage was surprised to learn that two major trading hubs were gone, Yasaku and Kansai. He told the blond he hadn't received any news or word from Kansai in the past three days, ever since the lock-down in the country and that alone proved to the blond that demons had indeed taken over the city.

It was hard for the kage to swallow the news, the fact that they were going to battle against demons, that they needed to protect the angel while he closed the gate to Hell itself. But he was told to keep it secret, he swore to keep it a secret. They ninjas didn't need to know the entire truth, the blond was uncertain how they would react, would they cower in fear and run away? Would they stand and fight hoping they win? He wasn't going to gamble with that, the less they knew the better.

The plan was to besiege the city and force the demon army to step out and fight in the open, on the plains around the city. It was the only place not surrounded by mountains. He wasn't sure what kind of army he would face, he knew that wraiths and skeletons would be one force but by now they would have had enough time to summon more types.

"_Golems, Minotaur's, Imps, Hell Knights…there are a lot of types…too many to count."_ A knight said as he helped the blond was the blood off his wings.

"How are there so many?" he inquired while flinching.

"_The planet is very old, humanity is very old as well…"_ the knight replied making the blond sigh.

Once the demon army was out in the open the ninjas would use their jutsu's to take them down and clear a path for Naruto and his knights. Only he and his knights would enter the city, ninjas didn't poses the power to strike down a wraith and he didn't know how to imbue weapons with his energy.

The Raikage didn't seem to mind however, the blond thought that the Raikage pretty much didn't want to lose any ninjas. After all, if he ever had to face demons in his own backyard ever again he would need all the manpower he could use.

There was the matter of Yugito and Bee however, when the blond questioned them about their Bijuu they told him that they didn't act differently from what they used to. This puzzled him a bit, he asked them if they tried to break free, if they tried to kill them while in their mindscape but they denied their Bijuu ever trying to do that.

Could that mean that Kyuubi was the only "demon" Bijuu? Or were the other Bijuu waiting for an opportune moment? He didn't know for sure, however he asked the two jinchuuriki to relay him if their Bijuu started acting up in any way.

"Thanks" the blond said to the knight as he finished bandaging his wing, the knight bowed and left.

He was lucky that the knights he lost last night weren't "dead". The skeletons only destroyed their physical bodies, he would have to wait at least three days before he could summon them again, but it was alright. For a second he was scared he recklessly sent his men to die, he had never commanded an army, of any size. He never knew how much a decision matter until last night, but he was certain he would never make the same mistake again.

The blond laid down on the grass and looked up at the sky, they would attack the city tomorrow night, the Raikage insisted that he rest for the night. He didn't argue with that, he needed some rest.

The moon was out, another red moon. He could hear Kyuubi laughing in the back of his head; it sent a shiver down his spine. The fox knew something and he liked it, that or it was trying to play with his mind again. He sighed as he closed his eyes, his mind drifting towards Satsuki once more. A small smile graced his lips as he heard her calling him, it was strange, the angels told him that sometimes they can hear when someone prays, when someone calls out for them.

He concentrated on her voice and before he knew it he was standing right next to her bed. She was sleeping and mumbling his name. He chuckled as he moved his hand through her hair. The blond looked at her sleeping form, gently touching her cheeks. He still didn't understand what he had seen back then, but he would ask her when he returned.

"Naruto…" she called out making the blond look at her "…don't leave…please…" she said as the blond smiled and sat down next to her bed, deciding to stay for a bit and watch over her.

* * *

**A/N: Alright, a shorter chapter. The next one will come out either in a week or two, or in July, exams are knocking on the door again and I need to get ready. Till then, I leave you with this.**


	8. Undead night II

**The Archangel – Undead night (II) **

"So…you used these machines centuries ago?" the blond asked while staring at the massive machines that were making their way through the village of Kumogakure

"_Yes, we besieged cities and castles with them, they never failed us." _The knight answered as he walked next to the blond handing him a map of the city they were going to besiege in the next few hours.

"You think we can reach it by nightfall?" he asked as the knight nodded and blew the horn. The rest of the knights moved next to the three catapults to protect them on the way to the city, you could never be sure what would happen on the road.

The blond gazed at the catapults one last time. The Raikage offered six ninjas to assist them, the ninjas would use their jutsu's to create the ammunition for the catapults and load them, from there the knights would handle the rest.

His eyes then moved to the archers in the back, twenty-five in number. He already had a plan on how to use the low numbers to his advantage, with a little luck the enemy wouldn't know that his small army was accompanied by the ninja's of Kumogakure. With that element of surprise at his side the blond was more then certain he would have the upper-hand in the battle tonight.

Gripping the swords hilt he thought about his plan a little, he wasn't one hundred percent sure that it would work the way he planned it. He wanted to consult the matter with the Commander, but when he tried to reach him, they told him he wasn't there, that the Commander was on the battlefield. The others didn't prove much help, they were soldiers, not tacticians, they followed orders, not think of strategies and ways to defeat the enemy.

He sighed heavily, they didn't know what types of demons they would face, they didn't know how many occupied the city, if people were still alive in the city or not…they were going in blind. Naruto didn't want to risk sending any scouts there, especially not a shinobi, one wrong step and the enemy would immediately know what he was planning. That or they would get the idea that he was preparing to attack them so soon.

The best course of action he could come up with was this one, go in blindly with the plan they devised, hope the enemy takes the bait, kill them before they have a chance to react, close the portal before more come out and kill the Wraith Lord. In theory his plan was flawless…but in practice, anything could happen. The Raikage warned him about it, his knights warned him as well and he knew this by now.

He wasn't going in without a backup plan however, he was prepared in case the enemy didn't take the bait or they prepared a trap for them. His plan however remained not to involve the ninjas too much. Less casualties on their side meant better odds against the enemy.

The boy watched as several ninjas bid farewell to their families before joining his party. The atmosphere didn't bode well with the blond, he didn't like the way they were concluding this attack. But, it made him realize just what was at stake; it also gave him a clear image of how things were in the past. His eyes moved towards the knight next to him, he still didn't know his name but the man had told him a lot about his past.

The knight told him about the first war between Heaven and Hell in which humanity took part. He shivered remembering what the knight told him, the man had seen his family butchered by demons; his friends slaughtered by the undead and yet still remained sane. The boy wanted to know how the man retained his sanity, but he didn't want to press on the issue.

The knight also took the liberty in explaining the blond what war meant in the past, how it was fought and what the stakes were. Compared to what he read in history books about the wars between hidden villages, those wars were worse and then, the more humanity evolved the consequences of a war became more dreadful.

He couldn't picture the weapons used in the last war against demons, machines that could fire projectiles. There was nothing in shinobi terms that he could compare them with, he couldn't picture them at all, however, from what he understood, despite the destructive power it had against other human beings, they proved almost worthless against the demon army.

Their machines were the only ones that held the demons at bay longer, but they still proved futile in the end.

The boy looked towards the inhabitants of Kumogakure once more; the vast majority was looking at him with an emotion that was completely foreign to him. Then there were the ones saying their goodbyes to the ninjas that will take part in the battle. He tried to keep his eyes away from them; he didn't need to think about what would happen if everything went to hell, if his backup plan failed as well.

The boy stopped as he felt something grab his robe, he looked behind. A little child was holding his robe and looking at him, from what he believed, the child was no older then six.

"Please look after daddy…" the child asked holding her stuffed toy closer to her chest. Moments later the mother appeared and crouched down pulling her child gently away from the blond, she looked up at him and gave a small smile, bowing slightly.

"I'm sorry if she was troubling you." She said with a small voice, though the blond could detect a hint of insecurity.

He turned to face them and kneeled down at the girl's level placing his hand on her head, he smiled towards her. "Don't worry, everyone will come home safely." He reassured her as he stood up and walked away.

"_I remember when I lead an army and someone asked me something like that…"_ the knight stated once the blond caught up with him. He looked up at his companion with a questioning gaze. _"I scoffed and chose to ignore … in war nothing is certain."_ He told the blond who sighed. The knight was right, but he just couldn't leave without reassuring the child. He was glad that the villagers didn't jump on him pleading to look after who knows who.

"Good luck!" he heard the Raikage shout, the blond looked up at the gates, the kage was standing on top of them with the jinchuuriki of the 8th tail next to him.

He nodded as he looked back down at the road; he extended his wings, it didn't hurt that much anymore, he hoped that by tonight he would be able to use them. His wings played an important role in his speed, fighting while flying still proved difficult for him; he still believed that if he had a bow and some arrows he would have no problem fighting while flying. He would have a great advantage over his enemies.

"Hmm…" the blond looked behind him, Nibi's jinchuuriki had joined the party. She was dressed in ANBU attire yet she wore no mask. She was at least three years older then him and from what he understood she had complete control over the Nibi. It didn't really surprise him, considering how the villagers treated the two jinchuuriki.

"Joining the fray?" the blond asked as Yugito's head snapped in his direction. She scowled slightly as she looked away.

"Lord Raikage ordered I lead our forces and pull them out if everything goes to hell…don't think I will be assisting you." She stated offhandedly, trying not to sound like a bitch and yet trying to make the blond understand that he would not be getting any help if he was in trouble.

She had direct orders not to interfere, even if things went to hell. She needed to pull the troops out if the demon army proved too much for them. Losing too many ninjas in a blind attack is worthless; it would only leave the village open to future attacks.

"Never asked for it." The blond replied looking back down the road. "This is my job." He stated as the knight looked towards him.

"_Yet I believe my lord should gather more allies."_ He stated as the boy turned to face him with a questioning gaze adorning his face. _"One man in a sea of enemies cannot stop them by himself."_

The boy sighed. "I know…I know…" he replied, the knight had been telling him this all day since he woke up. But where would he look for allies? Of course he knew that the old man would support him no matter what and give him ninjas to assist him, yet he was certain even that had a limit. The Hokage couldn't risk sending out all his troops out of Fire Country just to help another hidden village or Country if it was under attack by demons.

What if demons decided to attack when the army was gone? There would be no one to defend the people, the troops would return to a graveyard instead of their homes.

He couldn't just go to the Commander and ask for more knights as well, he didn't really know how many soldiers Heaven had in this war, his companion wouldn't answer the question as well. It only made the blond think that the situation was pretty grim as it is. They would have to do with the little resources they have and hope for the best.

"Has Nibi been acting strange?" the blond asked all of a sudden startling the kuniochi.

She looked towards him wondering why he asked that out of the blue. "No…it's just like yesterday, she seems to be frightened by … your presence." She stated as the blond nodded.

Somehow he felt that the Nibi wasn't afraid of him but afraid of his tenant. Back then when he first fought a demon army the necromancer demanded he would free their master. He believed that they meant Kyuubi, the fox was somehow connected with Hell or a part of it. He wondered if it was the same for Nibi and if it was, what kind of game it was playing.

The blond really wanted to just stay in Kumogakure for a few days, to watch over the two jinchuuriki and see how they react, if any changes appear. Kyuubi started manifesting only after he turned into an angel, but what if that rule didn't apply to the other Bijuu? What if they were already manifesting behind his back? But most importantly, what if the demons they were fighting now were actually "loyal subjects" of Nibi.

"_My lord." _He heard the knight call. The army had stopped moving and they were all staring at the sky. He too looked up and his eyes widened in fright and confusion. The moon was moving in front of the sun, the red moon to be more precise.

"How…why…what is happening?" the blond asked not understanding what was going on. He had seen an eclipse when he was young, but he was certain eclipses didn't happen this often and more specifically not with a red moon that enhances a demonic army.

"_I've never see a phenomenon like this before."_ His companion said amazed as well by what he was seeing.

"_We'd best hurry."_ Another knight said as they all turned to face him _"I saw this once in my past…the outcome was horrific…we need to strike the city as soon as possible and close the portal."_ He said as the blond nodded.

He gave the signal to his companion who blew the horn once more. _"Change of plans!"_ he shouted on top of his lungs _"We will have to attack the city sooner then we had planned, speed up!" _

Shouts echoed around them as they all complied with the order. The army started moving once more, faster then before. Naruto looked at his companion one last time, he was right, in war nothing was certain.

* * *

They arrived at the outskirts of the city just a few hours before nightfall. Thought they weren't sure anymore if it was night or day. The moon had completely blocked the sun, the sky was red and the wind blew with incredible force. It made the blond shiver, he had a very bad feeling about this battle, the knight that told them to hurry had yet to tell them why, what the eclipse meant and what might happen.

"_Unpack the catapults! Faster!" _his companion ordered as the knights desperately tried to unpack the large war machines faster.

The blond looked around, a small light caught his attention. The Raikage's forces were in place and were waiting for his signal. He turned towards the city, from here it seemed like a peaceful place, nothing seemed out of place with it. But its appearance didn't deceive him, he could feel the demonic presence behind the large walls. He was more then sure no human being was alive anymore.

"_My lord."_ The knight said bowing _"We are ready and waiting for your signal."_ He stated as the blond inspected the catapults. They were positioned in a line, with at least a twenty five meters distance between them.

He turned his attention to the archers and made signaled them to move in position. The archers moved in front of the catapults leaving a small distance between each other and the catapults themselves. Knights walked in front of the archers placing braziers near them and igniting the contents.

Finally the blond looked towards the six ninjas and nodded towards them. They moved closer to the catapults, two for each one and waited for the signal.

Naruto turned towards the city and raised his hand, the ninjas flashed through hand signs and summoned large boulders, then they positioned them carefully on the catapult where the knights told them. The blond stared at the city for several seconds. The entire area was covered in silence; the only source of noise was the wind blowing through the nearby trees.

Suddenly, the blond lowered his hand. _"FIRE!"_ a knight shouted as the catapults fired simultaneously, the large boulders smashing into the city walls, ripping them apart. The blond watched and waited, expecting the undead army to march out and attack them, yet nothing was happening.

He raised his hand once more, the ninjas loaded the catapults and then he ordered them to fire. The gate fell to the precise strike, yet the enemy was nowhere to be seen. The blond was starting to doubt the plan, the enemy might have already known they were coming; they might have had spies within Kumogakure.

The blond grit his teeth in anger. As the wind picked up and the sky darkened the blond ordered for another salvo to be fired. This time they hit several buildings, making one of them collapse.

Slowly, it started to rain; the blond ordered another salvo to be fired. By the time they were ready to fire the fifth salvo the rain intensified, starting to obscure their view. The blond gently lowered his hand and looked up at the sky, the moon was blocked by the dark clouds, thunders illuminated the sky.

The heavy rain not only did it obscure his vision but it also made it harder for him to hear what was going on around him. He tried to focus his view on the city, to spot any kind of movement that might be coming from its general direction.

His eyes widened as he saw the shapes of the undead. He could vaguely distinguish a massive skeleton army, behind them stood creatures made out of rock, their red eyes piercing through ones soul. The blond grinned for a second, it seemed like they took the bait, they were out in the open.

He raised his sword up in the sky and channeled energy into the blade making fire appear around it. He waved it around several times and then lowered his weapon. They waited and waited. But, the attack never happened. The undead army kept marching towards them and the ninjas that were supposed to attack stood silent.

His eyes narrowed, the rain picked up even more if it was possible, the wind blew with even more intensity. Most likely Raikage's forces were unable to see his signal, they didn't know they were supposed to strike. This was bad, very bad and he somehow felt that the rain was not natures doing but the demons handy work.

"Archers!" the blond shouted with anger evident in his voice, so they won't be able to resort to plan A, they would have to go for plan B. "Aim!" he shouted as the archers lit their arrows and took aim, they too could barely see the enemy in the heavy rain, they mostly relied on instincts and the enemies last know location. "Fire!" he shouted as the archers unleashed a hail of arrows into the sky. They saw them going up and then descending, hopefully on the enemy.

"_My lord."_ The knight started as the blond looked towards him.

"Send one of our riders towards Yugito's location, tell her to engage." He ordered as the knight nodded and turned away.

The blond turned towards the rest of the knights. "Footmen, forward!" he ordered as they raised their shields from the ground and unsheathed their swords. They moved forward until they got in front of the archers, stopping just a few meters away from them. "Hold position!" the blond ordered as they raised their shield and took a defensive stance in front of the archers.

"Catapults!" the blond shouted once more signaling the operators of the catapults to get ready. "Archers! Light a path!" he ordered as they lit their arrows once more and fired them. However, this time they fired at a lower degree, closer to the ground in hopes of spotting the enemy forces. But as the last arrow touched the ground and its flame died down they still had no insight on where the enemy might be.

"Tch…" he wasn't pleased with what was happening, this wasn't what he had hoped for. Even plan B was going down the drain. "Catapults, fire!" he shouted as the war machines fired their salvos, the massive rocks hitting the ground not far from where the arrows had previously landed. The blond hoped that the attack would have at least scratched the incoming army.

* * *

The messenger had a hard time reaching Kumo's army, in the heavy rain he could barely see anything in front of him, he nearly crashed with his horse in a tree. As he reached the outskirts of the forest he gently touched his horse to make it move slower. He entered the forest warily, they didn't know if the demon army was here as well or not, if they knew about their plans or it was just a coincidence that the rain started like this.

He took out his sword and used the flat end to knock on trees, the second signal they decided to use in case the first one failed. However, the lack off response made the messenger worry that something might have happened. He hit another tree, and another, and another. Slowly he was starting to lose faith.

"Over here." He heard someone call out and turned towards the direction of the sound, he saw three ANBU, one sitting on a tree branch and the other two next to the tree's trunk, they all had their weapons out and seemed tense.

"What's happening?" asked one of the ninjas as the messenger turned towards them.

"_A setback from our original plan" _the knight replied as he sheathed his sword. _"My Lord wishes for you to engage the enemy."_

"Easier said then done." Yugito replied appearing next to the messenger, startling him. "We can't see shit in this rain." She told him as he nodded knowingly.

"_I know, but they are marching towards our location. We need assistance."_

"How do we know they didn't figure out our plan?" she asked again, it seemed like they didn't want to take any chances now and who could blame them? The sudden rain was nothing that they had expected, the messenger was almost certain that even Naruto had his hunch that the demons were trying to keep the ninjas from attacking, that they were trying to isolate the blond from any kind of backup.

"_We don't, but if you don't help us we will fall, they your country will fall and humanity will die once more."_ He replied venomously as Yugito growled at him.

"Very well, we will see what we can do." She replied as the messenger nodded and turned around, leaving the forest. The jinchuuriki watched him leave; it didn't take long for the rider to vanish from her sights. When he was gone she turned towards her ninja and crossed her arms in front of her chest.

"So…what do we do?" one of them asked curiously as more ninjas appeared around them.

Yugito looked beyond the forest, trying to pick up any movement. She called forth Nibi's chakra and enhanced her eyes, but it seemed futile. "I think the answer is clear as light." She replied emotionlessly.

* * *

Things were definitely not going the way the blond had hoped. His backup plan had failed him and they were now surrounded; two out of the three catapults had been completely destroyed, the large Golems crushed a ninja and two archers under a catapult, the other five ninja's were fighting with the golems, despite the fact that the blond told them to turn around and retreat.

He grit his teeth as he ducked under a sword and used his shield the throw his enemy off-balance. Finally he crushed the skeletons head under his foot, he looked around, his knights were holding the enemy off fairly well, but even that would last for so long. He turned his attention towards a approaching Golem, he jumped out of the way as it slammed its massive arms in the ground, where he once stood.

The Golem turned towards the blond and slammed its hand in the ground, it started pulling out a massive chunk of rock that it hurled towards the blond. Naruto's eyes widened as his raised his shield in front of him and channeled energy into it creating a large wall. There was no time to dodge the incoming projectile, he stood his ground. As the rock slammed into the shield the blond was thrown away by the sheer power.

He slammed into the ground and rolled away several feet before coming to a complete halt. He groaned as he jumped back on his feet and charged towards the Golem. The blond ducked under a swing and jumped on the Golems head; unsheathing his sword, he plunged it into its head making it stop moving. Seconds later cracks appeared as it collapsed on the ground, the blond dropping in the middle of the rubble.

He heard the knight sounding the horn, archers disengaged the enemy and ran away from them, the knights and ninjas covered their retreat as the archers made considerable distance between themselves and the undead army.

The blond raised his shield once more blocking an attack. "Any time now!" he shouted towards the archers that had taken position not far away from them. They took aim with their bows and unleashed a hail of arrows towards the undead army. Each arrow hit its target, the skull of a skeleton, stopping the undead monster in its tracks.

They wasted no time in grabbing more arrows and firing upon the demon army. The remaining ninjas took a defensive position in front of the archers, assisting them against any incoming attack, especially Golems.

Naruto slammed his shield in the ground once more and kneeled behind it. The energy accumulated in the shield expanded creating a massive wall, preventing anything from getting through it. He grit his teeth as the Golems started slamming their fists in the wall, they were slowly pushing the blond back with his shield.

Archers continued to fire their arrows hitting the golem, but the attacks had no effect at all. Without a blessing or enhancement from an angel their weapons were useless against the majority of the demon army. They could only do so much, which was keeping the skeletons at bay or destroying them.

The knights soon disengaged as well as they ran towards the blond and assumed a defensive position around him. The howl of the wolves echoed around them, in the thick rain, they could vaguely catch a glimpse of their bodies, the beasts that were half dead half alive, demon wolves.

Moments later the wolves charged towards the archers and the knights, the knights themselves had no problem in defending themselves from the onslaught, the archers however were not that lucky. Three were taken down in a single swoop and dragged away by the ferocious beasts while two others were killed on the spot.

"Protect the archers!" the blond shouted as half of the knights ran towards their comrades to help them fight against the undead wolves. He grit his teeth as another wave of pain traversed through his body; he looked up at the golems, they were still hitting the shield wall.

The blond looked towards the knight with the corner of his eyes and ordered him to sound the horn once more. His companion did as he was told, he sounded the horn. His men all disengaged the enemy once more and moved closer to the blond. Just as another golem was about to hit the wall the blond broke the spell and jumped away, the massive pile of rocks crashing on the ground.

They moved closer to each other, their backs facing each other. The demon army surrounded them, their wolves growled at them, the skeletons crackled, probably their way of laughing at their futile attempts to defeat them and win the battle.

The battle had temporarily ceased, the demon army stood there, watching the blond and his knights, waiting for them to make a move. The blond and his men did the same, they waited for the enemy to attack.

"_My lord?" _a knight questioned as he raised his shield, the blond had no idea what to do. His primary plan failed, his backup plan failed, his retreat was impossible, they were cornered.

He grit his teeth, there was only one way out. As a thunder roared in the sky the blond shouted to the heavens, ordering his men to engage. With a loud battle cry the knights charged forward slamming in the skeletons, a few were unlucky and were sent flying by a golem. The archers did their best to fire their bows and defend themselves against the wolves with the daggers or short swords they had on them.

The remaining ninja's did their best to support the archers, unleashing lighting bolts or thunders on the enemy, creating traps and crushing the undead wolves as they fell in their traps, but even with their help it wasn't enough to keep the wolves at bay.

Naruto did his best to take down all golems that got in his way, he was considering using the powers to the fullest, to unleash everything he had in his arsenal. However, he held back, still hoping that the Raikage's forces would reach them soon, that they would find them before it's too late and assist them.

"Gah!" the blound shouted in pain as a golem managed to punch the blond making him crash in the ground. The blond coughed as he narrowed his eyes and rolled away from his spot, just in time as a golem slammed in the ground where he once stood.

His eyes glowed white as he jumped back on his feet, fire appearing around his sword and gauntlet. He charged forward once more, slamming into the golem and making it take several steps back before falling on the ground, on its back. Naruto wasted no time in jumping on top of the golem and plunging his sword into its skull which cracked from the power unleashed through it.

He turned his head towards the approaching skeletons and swinged his sword towards them. A wall of flame raced from the sword towards the skeletons, burning everything that got in its way. As it collided with the undead forces it melted their bones until nothing, not even ashes was left.

Several knights took a defensive stance and turned towards the blond. _"Is he awakening?"_ one of the knights questioned silently as he watched the blond manifest. The ground underneath him was slowly caving in from the pressure unleashed from the blond, the demon army suddenly turned their attention to the boy as they all rushed towards him.

"_Shit!" _a knight shouted as the blond jumped out of the way just in time as a massive rock slammed in the ground where he once stood.

Naruto looked up towards the Golem that threw the rock, his eyes narrowed even further as vanished from his spot and appeared in front of the Golem; he slammed into the rock creature with his shield making it drop on the ground with a loud 'thud'.

He raised his sword above the golems head, but before he could plunge it in its skull the golem grabbed him and slammed him in the ground. He gasped for air as he collided with the ground, he felt the golem closing its fist on him, trying to constrict him. He grit his teeth in pain as he struggled to set himself free.

A massive thunder suddenly slammed into the golem shattering its head, the grip on the blond loosened, Naruto took a deep breath and coughed. He looked at the spot where the golem once stood.

"Seems like you need a hand" he heard Yugito's voice through the rain.

His eyes stopped glowing as he turned towards the girl's direction. She was standing a few feet away from him with her hands on her hips and a proud smirk plastered on her face.

"Took you long enough." He grumbled as Yugito helped the blond back on his feet.

"Yea well, you try finding your way through this damn rain. I'm already soaked and by the end of the day I will be like a fountain." She complained as another lighting bolt descended from the sky hitting a approaching golem. A smirked graced her lips as they heard the golem crash.

The blond shook his head as he looked away towards the battlefield, assessing the current situation. All sort of jutsu's were being thrown left and right on the battlefield, the vast majority being lighting based jutsu's. He even saw a few ANBU's going head to head with a bunch of skeletons; their katana's easily took down the skeletons.

"We'll handle it from here." Yugito said as she walked past the blond while flashing through several hand signs. Two large dragons made out of lighting descended from the sky and crashed on the battlefield, on top of a large concentration of enemies. They suddenly burst from the ground, from underneath two golems, lifting them in the air and them throwing them down on the ground.

The blond turned towards his archers and signaled them, they took their bows in their hands and formed a line. They took aim and fired their arrows on the skeleton army.

Naruto grinned; luck was on his side today.

* * *

The battle didn't last long, by the time it was over the rain wasn't as intense as it used to be. They could see the city in the distance and the bones of the skeletons littered on the battlefield, the bodies of the undead wolves scattered around the battlefield as well.

In the distance they could see a small band of demons retreating back into the city. The blond signaled his companion who took out his horn and blew it. The remaining archers lowered their weapons and moved back while the knights took a step forward.

The blond turned towards Yugito who was staring at the city, he walked next to her and she turned towards him. "Is everyone dead?" she asked as the blond turned his attention towards the city and nodded grimly.

"Either dead…or undead…" he replied as Yugito sighed and turned towards him.

"You sure you can handle yourselves in there?" she asked with concern evident in her voice. He smiled, she wasn't a bad person, the first impression he got from her was that she was a cold and uncaring person.

"Yes, since the majority of their forces are gone, no matter how many they summon, it won't be enough to hold us back now." He replied as he ordered his knights to move out. They formed a box and started moving towards the city.

Yugito looked towards the knights, ten in number. She wasn't that sure that it would be enough; sure they managed to hold out against the demon onslaught until their backup had arrived. But the blond wanted to charge in the city without any kind of backup, she didn't understand why he was doing this.

"It's for the best." The blond replied as if he read her mind, she looked towards him. The angel was staring at the city. "I'd rather not have the blood of ninja's on my hands." He said as he walked away, following his knights.

As the city drew closer the air around them became colder, a sign that the wraiths were around. The blond nodded towards the knight that was looking back at him, he unsheathed his sword, the rest of the knights doing the same moments later.

As they entered the city the blond grimaced at the sight. Dead bodies were littered everywhere, pinned to houses, mutilated and scattered all around. Men, women, children…the demons had killed every living soul in the city, there was no one left.

They looked around carefully, making sure the wraiths didn't take them by surprise.

"Do it." The blond whispered from behind as the knights moved away from each other, leaving a few feet distance from each other.

He wanted to make sure they covered enough ground and weren't too close to each other in case more golems were around. A boulder would solve them in one go if they sticked too close to each other. He wasn't going to gamble with that, better safe then sorry.

As they made their way through the dead city the blond began to wonder what the wraith lord was plotting. He had thought that the demons would have attacked by now, yet everything was silent. The aura of death however kept them on high alert, they knew the enemy was watching them and waiting for the right time to strike.

The blond turned around, walking backwards while following his men. He watched their back, he surveyed the city once more before turning to face his men yet again.

"_I don't like this."_ One of the knights stated.

"_I agree…it's too quiet…"_ another one added as three more nodded in approval.

"_Pay attention then, we don't want to give them any openings."_ The blond's companion ordered as they all nodded and mouthed a _'yes sir'_.

They kept walking for several minutes, following the blond's orders. They were getting closer to the portal. As they reached the market they came to a halt, before them stood a large portal. The portal was within a archway made of bones and flesh. The blond grimaced knowing that they were the bones and flesh of the inhabitants of the city.

But even now, in front of the gate, there was no sign of the enemy. "Watch my back." The blond ordered as the knights formed a circle around the blond, they raised their shields and took a defensive position. The blond kneeled down and started chanting and channeling energy towards the portal.

A cold wave suddenly washed over them as the blond gasped in pain. He looked down at his chest with shocked eyes, the tip of a sword was coming out of his chest. Before he could look behind him something kicked him in the back and sent him crashing in the ground, his sword dropping a few feet away from him.

"_My lord!"_ the knights shouted as the turned to charge the enemy that stabbed their leader in the back. However, before they could even lift their feet from the ground the wraiths appeared around them from thin air. They heard movement in nearby alleys; skeletons marched out of the darkness, slowly approaching them.

"_Defend yourselves!"_ the leader of the knights shouted as the attacked the wraiths and skeletons.

Naruto growled as he slowly got back on his feet, he turned towards the person that stabbed him. The wraith lord stood there glaring at him.

"_**You are a thorn in my plans boy."**_ The wraith whispered, his voice resonating from all around the blond. _**"I will make sure…I end you here…"**_ he said as he entire body started glowing, red swirls appearing around him.

Figures stepped out of the portal, the blond's eyes widened as he recognized the figures, red demons. Bloodletters if he remembered correctly, they looked the same like the demon he encountered in the temple back in Konoha.

"_**A gift, from the ninth level of Hell itself."**_ The wraith lord whispered evilly as more Bloodletters stepped out of the portal, a total of thirty stood before the blond. All of them had the same large claymore in their hands, all of them growling towards him.

"Heh…you will need more then that to take me down." The blond stated as his sword appeared in his hand, a circle of flames appeared at his feet as he vanished from his spot and appeared in the middle of the demon army, the flames still present at his feet. "Burn." He whispered as the flames suddenly expanded and grew bigger.

The demons jumped away in time, only three were unlucky as to be caught by the attack. They burned to their deaths; only their claymores remained untouched by the flames. The remaining demons roared as they charged the blond, some leaped towards him. The blond jumped out of the way as two demons crashed in the ground where he once stood, their sword hitting the ground.

They turned towards the blond and charged forward. Naruto ducked under a swing and plunged his sword in his attackers chest, he cut the demon in half and kicked the upper half in a nearby demon making it growl in anger. The blond raised his left hand and grabbed a Bloodletters claymore with his gauntlet, with his sword he cut its hand off and while it was busy howling it pain he cut its head off.

He grinned as he ducked under another attack, this seemed too easy. With another swing of the sword the blond cut another demon in half. With the swords flat end the blond busted another ones knees making it fall on the ground, he then delivered the final blow by chopping its head off.

One by one the demons fell to the blond's sword; the knights had no trouble in their fight against the wraiths and skeletons. However, it seemed like their numbers just wouldn't go down, more and more kept coming.

As the last Bloodletter fell to the ground the blond turned towards the wraith lord who was standing in front of the portal, waiting from what it seemed. The blond smirked, they were going to end this faster then he would have thought.

As if reading the blond's mind the wraith lord started laughing. _**"Don't think this is over …"**_ it whispered as it unsheathed its sword and vanished from its spot. It appeared moments later in front of the blond who raised his sword just in time to parry the wraith lords' attack.

It however didn't stop there, the wraith pushed back and swung its sword from the left. The blond moved out of the way as the sword cut through the air, just a few inches away from his chest. It then swung its sword upwards making the blond bend backwards, the sword once more just inches away from his face.

He growled as he swung his sword towards the wraith lord, who parried the attack effortlessly. The blond channeled energy in his left gauntlet and closed his fist. He ducked under another attack and parried the second swing. He spun around getting back the demon and thrust his left hand in the wraiths back.

The energy accumulated in his gauntlet was unleashed in the wraiths back sending it flying in a nearby building. Naruto lowered his hand and raised his sword, waiting for the wraith to appear again. His eyes narrowed as he spun around and blocked the wraiths sword once more. He slammed into the wraith, or at least tried to. The demon anticipated the attack and vanished before the blond could collide with it.

Naruto fell to the ground face first. He grit his teeth as he rolled out of the way, the wraiths sword cutting the ground where he once stood. It slowly turned its ghostly head towards the blond who jumped back on his feet and charged forward. The wraith raised its sword and started parrying the blond's vicious attacks.

They exchanged blows for several minutes until the wraith noticed that its minions were starting to vanish by the knights blades. It ducked under one of the blond's powerful swings and tried stabbing the boy in the chest, the boy however reacted faster and moved his body out of the way, he then kicked the wraith making it take a few steps backwards. As it regained its balance it raised its sword and parried the blond's attack.

"_**Lets take this elsewhere."**_ The wraith lord whispered as it suddenly vanished. The blond looked around trying to figure out where it disappeared. Suddenly a pair of hands popped from under the ground grabbing the blond's feet.

"What the…?" he was unable to finish his sentence as he was suddenly pulled under the ground.

* * *

A loud splash was heard as the blond crashed in the sewer water. He immediately got back on his feet and gasped for air. He felt like puking, if he wasn't prepared for the worst he would have most likely taken a mouthful. The thought made him feel like puking.

Shaking his head he looked around trying to spot the wraith. It was too dark however; he could barely see anything around him. The blond became confused, wraiths usually glowed in the dark, albeit slightly, but they glowed.

"_**I am not like the other ones…"**_ the wraith lord stated as if reading the blond's mind. The blond grit his teeth in pain as he felt the wraith's sword stab him in the back once more.

"You fucking asshole." He rasped out as he turned around and swung his sword towards the wraith lord, only to cut the air. His eyes widened, the wraith was there moments ago, he knew it. He turned around trying to figure out where the demon might have vanished.

The blond screamed once more as he felt the wraiths sword cut his back once more, he turned around trying to cut the wraith but once more the wraith was gone as soon as he turned around. He frantically looked around, trying to spot the wraith, but each time he thought that he had his sight on it and tried to cut it the wraith was no longer there.

He knew that it was faster then a normal wraith, but its speed combined with the darkness in the sewers made it a deadly opponent right now. It wasn't enough that it was deadly when fighting near the portal, now it was worse then before.

The angel growled as he felt the wraith cut him once more, he roared as fire erupted around him illuminating the area around him for a second. He could see the wraith move from wall to wall, it gave him an idea. Calming down the blond listened carefully to the "world" around him, he could hear the water flowing through the sewer.

His eyes narrowed as he heard soft footsteps on the waters surface, he listened carefully and turned around blocking the wraiths sword. He grinned in satisfaction. _**"Got you."**_ His eyes widened as he felt the wraiths blade stab him in the back once more, the blond spat out blood as he stumbled forward.

Naruto growled, the wraith played with him and his hearing. He frantically looked around and decided to try one more thing. He channeled energy at his feet and then released it. A large flame erupted around him, it them moved away from the blond in a circle, illuminating the area around him.

His eyes caught the wraith lord moving towards a nearby wall, he appeared next to it before it could move in the wall and vanish. Naruto grabbed the demon and threw it in the water, he then swung his sword towards it unleashing a fireball at it. The wraith suck into the ground just as the fireball hit the waters surface.

Naruto growled, this cat and mouse game was going to be the end of him if he kept playing it. He looked around the sewer trying to figure out a way out, the only way to fight the wraith was if he was somewhere with enough space for him to catch up with the wraith lord. If he allowed it to faze through walls he would never be able to defeat it.

The blond unleashed another fire circle and inspected the sewers. His eyes landed on several pillars that seemed to be supporting the ceiling. He grinned as a thought passed through his mind, ducking under the wraith lord's sword, the blond vanished from his spot only to appear near a pillar. The pillar suddenly cracked and parts of it started falling in the water.

Without wasting any time the blond attacked the rest of the pillars while dodging the wraith lord's sword. With each pillar he took down he could sense the ceiling shaking, slowly pieces of the ceiling were starting to fall.

"_**You damn brat!"**_ the wraith lord shouted as it appeared in front of the blond with its sword ready to strike. Naruto raised his sword above his head just in time to parry the attack. He crouched down under the attacks pressure.

The ground started shaking all of a sudden as more pieces of the ceiling started falling in the water. Naruto knew that the sewer will cave in any moment, the wraith lord would just faze through it, but he would need his shield to defend himself. With a furious battle cry Naruto pushed the wraith's sword away and kicked it away. He summoned his shield just in time as the ceiling fell down on top of it.

The loud crash echoed throughout the dead city as the ground in front of the portal started sinking. The wraith lord appeared in front of the portal and watched as the ground sinks deeper and deeper. It hoped that the blond was dead; however it knew that the angel wouldn't be taken down by that. True to his thought the blond suddenly burst through the ground and flew in the air.

He landed graciously moments later in front of the wraith lord, just a few feet away. They stared at each other for several seconds before they both vanished from their spots at the same time only to reappear moments later a few feet away in a deadlock. The blond grit his teeth as he added more pressure to the attack, the wraith lord did the same.

They finally broke the deadlock and jumped away from each other, once more they charged forward and as their sword met a loud 'clang' they started exchanging blows at incredible speed. The blond ducked and side stepped attacks from the wraith, from time to time parrying its sword, the wraith lord parried the blond's attacks and dodged when it couldn't parry an attack.

Naruto channeled energy into his sword lighting it up, the wraith lord narrowed its eyes as it jumped away. The angel was surprised when the wraiths sword caught fire as well, however, unlike the pure white flames around his sword the wraiths flames were black as the night itself.

They raised their swords in front of them and charged once more. As their sword collided flame tendrils wrapped around them. The wraith howled in pain as the flames cut him from time to time, the blond grit his teeth and kept his mouth shut each time one of the black tendrils hit him. They stung worse then the sword that stabbed him five times in a row.

The knights watched as the two exchanged blows, the power radiating from both the angel and the wraith was making the ground sink under their feet. The wraith lord was something else, it wasn't like the other, there was something strange about it. To some of the knights it felt familiar, but they couldn't place it. This was no ordinary wraith lord, that they knew for sure.

Trying to reach the blond and assist him would be futile, the large gap in the ground between them was too big to jump and they were certain they couldn't climb up towards them if they jumped in the sewer. All they could do was stand and watch.

The blond ducked under the wraith's attack once more, this guy was stronger that he had anticipated. _**"Enough."**_ The wraith lord suddenly said as it raised its open palm towards the blond. A strange force suddenly pushed the blond away making him fly in a nearby statue, shattering it. He groaned as he stood up and looked for the wraith lord.

He spotted the wraith in front of the portal, there was something strange happening with the portal, the wraith was summoning something. The blond jumped back on his feet and charged towards the wraith lord, but as he got close to the portal he slammed into an invisible wall and fell on down. He rubbed his face as he looked up; a shield was defending the portal.

"_**Heh…"**_ the wraith lord laughed as the portal started crumbling, something was very strange. Why would the wraith lord destroy the portal? His eyes widened as a strange person walked out of the portal. The … man was wearing a strange metal armor, his helmet had two horns coming out of it, his shoulder plates had spikes, the design of a skull was present on his chest. His gauntlets had spikes coming out of it, a cape made out of fur…or skin?...on his back. A large broadsword lay strapped to his back and a sword tied to his hip.

"_**Finally…my body…"**_ the wraith lord howled as it moved towards the figure, fusing with it. The flash of light made the blond and his knights cover their eyes. As the light died down they saw the man standing in front of the archway, the portal was closed.

The man raised his hands and looked at them, he closed and opened his fists and then started laughing, his laughter sent a shiver down the blond's spine.

"_Oh god…"_ one of the knights said taking a step back in fright.

"_My lord! Run!"_ another one shouted as the blond looked at him.

"Eh?" he asked as the man appeared in front of him, the blond had no time to react as the man punched him in the face and sent him flying into a building.

"**Yes! YES!"** the man shouted in glee **"The power! I can feel it coursing through me once more!"** he shouted as he looked towards the blond who was making his way out of the building.

"_My lord, run!"_ the knights shouted _"You can't defeat him!"_ they shouted making the blond wonder who was the man before him. Was he not the same wraith lord he had fought up until now?

Recalling his sword, the blond charged forward despite the knights' constant pleas for him to turn around and run. The man smirked under his helmet; his eyes glowed with a sickly purple color as he unsheathed his broadsword.

The blond swung his sword with all his force, however, the man before him managed to parry the attack like it was nothing. He smirked evilly as he kicked the blond in the chest and then raised his sword, he lowered it on top of the blond hitting his shoulder and cutting him. Naruto yelled in pain as the man kicked him once more and cut his shoulder with his sword, leaving a deep gash.

The boy grabbed his shoulder in pain, he looked up at the demon before him wondering who he was. His eyes narrowed as he jumped out of the way just in time to avoid the massive broadsword. The boy shakily stood up and held his sword tightly. He channeled energy into his sword and swung it towards the demon, a wall of fire raced towards its target.

The man made no effort in dodging the attack, it let it collide with him, or so it seemed. With a swing of his sword the man managed to cut the attack in half, successfully defending himself. The blond took a step back in shock, not only did the man cut his attack, he did it with such ease, it was like child play.

The man vanished once more and appeared on front of the blond punching him in the stomach. The blond gasped for air as he dropped his sword and fell on the ground. The demon laughed as he stepped on the blond's shoulder, the same one that he had cut. The boy screamed in pain as tears leaked from his eyes. He had never felt this much pain before.

"**You are weak…"** the man stated evilly as he kicked the blond in the ribs making him fly in another statue, shattering it. The man slowly moved towards the blond who was trying to get up, but to no avail.

The angel tried and tried to get back on his feet, but it felt like all his strength had left him. He couldn't do anything anymore, all he could do is watch the demon approach him slowly, dragging his sword next to him. As the demon reached the blond it raised its sword to deliver the final blow. Naruto closed his eyes and waited for the blow to come.

A loud 'clang' resonated as the blond opened his eyes and gasped, above him stood an Archangel. The Archangel was wearing a plate armor, made out of gold, or so the blond believed. The armor was yellow like gold; it shinned even now, despite the lack of sunlight. His saviors face was covered by a white cowl, just like the blonds. The back of his armor, around his shoulder blades, was covered in spikes.

Unlike other angels Naruto had seen, the Archangels wings were different, even different from the Commander's wings. While the Commanders were a mix between gold and blue, these ones were deep blue. They also seemed longer.

"**Tyrael…"** the demon growled as the Archangel drew his fist back and punched the demon making him fly through three buildings.

The Archangel lowered his blade and moved back, he looked down at the blond. _"So we meet again young one…such a shame that we have to meet in these circumstances."_ The Archangel said making the blond wonder when he had met the man before.

"Where…is it?" the blond rasped out as the Archangel looked up and replied.

"_He ran, he knows better then to fight in his weakened state."_ He replied as he bent down and picked up the blond. _"We'd best get you healed…"_ he said as the blond fell into unconsciousness.

* * *

**A/N: And done….faster then I said I would…hehe…**

**First things first, don't expect things to be as you think they are…we know a bit about the bijuu, but since I stated in the first chapter that this is "massive" AU many things will/can change. I've been in the Naruto "business" for 3 years already (damn…that's a long time), so far nothing regarding canon skipped by me. But since its fiction, I want to take the liberty to stray away from canon, I don't want to "redo" the Naruto story, let others do that. I want to write a different type of story, with a different plot…**

**Second thing, before people ask me, this is not a cross with Diablo. If you want to think of the story as a cross then think of it as a multi-cross. I will add elements from a lot of games/books/animes/movies. So far I have Diablo, Killing Floor and Warhammer tucked in here…anything that has monsters and/or demons can be added (elements of it that is) here.**

**Lastly, if you want to know how Tyrael looks like, check my profile for a link.**


	9. Revelations

**A/N: This is a reupload, some people reported the chapter not working...strangely it seems like FF deleted the chapter.**

**The Archangel - Revelations**

----3 months after the battle

Sarutobi looked over the documents in front of him; his mind barely registered what he was reading. This was beyond imagination. According to the reports two major trading hubs from Lighting Country were gone, one of them for good. But that was not all, apparently the country had been under lock-down, something attacked the cities from inside the country.

The report went on in detail explaining how monsters from Hell attacked the two cities slaying everyone that got in their way, showing no mercy to anyone. Then the reports went on explaining how an angel leading a band of soldiers fought back the demons from the two cities and put a halt to their invasion of Lightning Country.

"_Naruto…"_ the aged Hokage thought with a smile. He was sure that the blond was responsible for the salvation of the country.

The aged Hokage sealed the reports and placed them nearby. He studied the next batch, a report from his ANBU stationed in Sunagakure. Despite the fact that the war was long over the old man still doubted it would last forever. Unlike other times, they would at least want to be prepared, so he had a squad of ANBU infiltrate the hidden village and report every six months.

For the past few years there had been no strange activities in the village, but for some reason things started acting up now. The chunnin exams were going to start in a few hours; the Kazekage had left the hidden village a few days ago with his destination being Konoha. However, his ANBU stated that the leader of Sunagakure had been acting strange in the past few days, ever since a port-town had been razed to the ground by unknown forces.

Officially they claimed that bandits and nuke-nin's ravaged the city, killing all those that opposed them and enslaving the rest. Unofficially, they had no idea what happened. All they found in the ruins of the town were charred copses, skinned bodies, organs littered around the street. It was like the town had been the battlefield between unknown forces, or just the playground for some other.

Sarutobi had a hunch what was going on there, but he hoped he was wrong. Reports also stated that the Kazekage had been … delayed for a few hours. He was supposed to reach a specific checkpoint at noon, yet arrived only at midnight.

No one knew for sure what was going on, the ninjas in Sunagakure were kept out of the loop regarding any kind of information, the same could be said about the council and village elders. No one knew what was happening in the country and to make matters worse, the sudden change in Wind Country's weather was highly questionable.

People were afraid to leave their homes, their cities, their villages. If a sandstorm caught you outside of your home you vanished from the face of the planet, never to be seen or heard of again. Even ninja's vanished without a trace, no one knew what was happening or who was behind the kidnapping, but it put everyone on the edge.

The Kazekage, in order to calm everyone, sent out squads of ninja's to patrol the desert between major cities. The Hokage's ANBU however had no further information regarding this, making the old man shake his head.

Sarutobi sighed as he finished reading the report, it would explain why he received one so soon. It was troubling; the news regarding the Kage was very troubling.

The aged Hokage looked down at another set of papers, reports from border patrols, and reports from patrols within Fire Country…ever since the rumor about Lighting Country he had taken precautions. He stationed more ninja's at the border, he sent out more ninja's to patrol the countryside, they needed to be prepared for anything, they couldn't let their guard down.

Sarutobi glanced out the window. "Anything else Jiraiya?" he asked as the sannin looked up from his sketch book and sighed.

"It's all I could gather from my spy networks." He stated bowing his head slightly; even Jiraiya knew when he had to be serious.

The Hokage nodded as he took his pipe out and lit it. "What is your take on this?" he asked as the man before him shrugged and laid back.

"Regarding the events in Lighting…I don't doubt it, but its very hard to believe." He stated as the Hokage nodded. "Regarding the Kazekage….now that I don't really know what to believe."

Sarutobi sighed as he crossed his hands in front of him. "What do you think I should do with the exams?" he asked as Jiraiya looked at his old mentor curiously, wondering why he would ask him such a thing.

"Don't cancel it…" he stated as he looked out the window. "…it's the perfect moment to see who is fit for being a ninja and weed out the weak." He said sorrowfully making the old man's eyes narrow at his student's choice of words. "If we are going to be attacked by….demons….we must know who is fit to stand a fight, to protect the village…"

Sarutobi nodded solemnly, sending out genin that had no skill whatsoever in combat was suicide. They would die at the hands of their enemy's, they wouldn't stand a chance.

"Very well…" he said as he opened a drawer and took out a sheet of paper. "Jiraiya, I have a task for you." He stated drawing the white haired man's attention. "Head to Kumogakure and hand this to the Raikage, bring me back his reply." He stated as Jiraiya stood up and walked over to the Hokage's desk. He took the paper out of his hands and examined it.

The man's eyes widened for a second before he nodded and turned to look at the aged leader giving him a nod. "I understand, I will return shortly with a reply." He stated as he turned around and walked to a window, jumping out of the office through it.

Sarutobi looked down at his desk; he looked down at his hands and wondered what would happen to the Elemental Countries. He had yet to tell Jiraiya what was really going on, he was the only one that knew the entire truth, not even Naruto knew about it…at least not yet. He told him that the boy would have to learn the truth by himself, in time. Sarutobi hoped that the blond would understand the situation and not freak out.

* * *

"Pathetic." The angel muttered as he dropped the lifeless body of the demon leader. He turned his head to the side and watched the Archangel dispose of the second demon leader, burning its body and leaving nothing behind. "They were pretty weak." The blond said as he turned his attention to the portal.

"_That is because of your training young one…"_ the Archangel stated as he walked next to the blond _"…if I had not trained you for that month you would have been defeated…"_

The blond nodded as he watched the Archangel close the portal. Tyrael had trained him for an entire month after his defeat at the hands of the Wraith Lord. Naruto had pestered the Archangel to tell him who he was and where they had met before, yet the angel stood silent and didn't answer his question, irritating the blond.

He was a bit sad that he couldn't stay and talk with the Raikage, to personally deliver him the message that the threat in his country was over. But Tyrael wanted to start his training as soon as possible, like he said back then, 'time is of the essence' and he was right.

The Archangel made sure to push the blond to his limits, training him for eighteen hours constantly with a few minutes break so that he could eat and just four hours of sleep. The boy couldn't complain, Tyrael wouldn't let him and at the same time he didn't want to complain, he trusted the angel.

Truth be told, he was a bit skeptical about him at first, Tyrael didn't want the blond to make contact with the Commander or tell the man about him, this puzzled the blond, making him wonder why the archangel wanted to stay hidden. But he didn't question the man, he had proved himself to be an honorable person and he couldn't detect any strange movements from him, the man had spoken the truth and only the truth ever since they met.

Tyrael did his best to help the blond perfect the spells he knew so far and his fighting style with the sword. He was surprised to see that the blond was a quick learner; he absorbed all the information like a sponge and still wanted to learn more. In just one month the blond managed to perfect the majority of his spells, the overall damage that they did increased and the required energy they demanded decreased as the blond learned how to harness his new found power more effectively.

"So…are you going to tell me where we met before?" he asked as the Archangel beckoned the blond to follow him, which he did.

The two walked in silence through the catacombs empty halls. From time to time they would step on the bones of their fallen enemies, skeletons once more. It seemed like skeletons were universal demons, Tyrael also stated that they were the largest in number serving under the demon army.

As they walked out of the catacomb and into the desert the Archangel sighed. _"We've met in the temple young one, or have you forgotten?"_ he asked turning his head slightly towards the blond whose eyes widened in surprise.

"You've never introduced yourself back then." The blond stated. "And come to think of it…you looked like a normal angel." He said once more as Tyrael laughed softly. Before the boy's eyes the archangel started changing, his wings receded into his body, the armor he was wearing faded away, replaced by the same robes that the blond wore and out of his back the same wings that all angels had burst.

Tyrael turned towards the blond and smiled at him. _"I can hide what I am, throw my enemies off-guard." _He said as the blond stood rooted in place, amazed at what he just learned.

"Wait!" the blond suddenly shouted, a thought passing through his mind. "Does that mean we can make our wings recede into our body?" he asked as the archangel gave a small nod.

"_However, its costly."_ He stated making the blond raise an eyebrow _"The more you hold them inside the weaker you get, until you can't call them out anymore and you lose your status as an angel."_ Tyrael replied making the boy's eyes widen in shock at the news. _"Also, every time you call your wings out it will sting…badly…"_

The blond grumbled, he still remembered the indescribable pain when his wings burst from his shoulder blades six months ago. He sighed as he realized that six months had past already. Looking up at the blue sky the blond wondered how this was all going to end. Tyrael opted to avoid his question regarding the last war between Heaven and Hell; he didn't know why the archangel avoided his questions regarding the old war.

"_Let's search for an oasis."_ Tyrael stated _"We will camp there for the night and then move to the next portal."_ The blond nodded as he followed the archangel through the desert.

It was the first time the blond had stepped into a country that had no grass, no trees and to top it all was hot as hell. He silently cursed the sun from time to time when walking through the vast desert, despite the fact that the robe seemed to stay at a steady temperature no matter what, the blond could still feel the heat from the sun on his back, especially on his wings.

He remembered what the archangel told him when they first stepped in Wind country, an old saying, to not fly too close to the sun, else your wings would melt and you would die by crashing into the ground. Tyrael told him the saying came from many centuries ago, from when man first tried to fly. While the rule did not apply to angels the blond still hated the thought that the sun might burn his wings.

Out of the six portals in Wind Country only four more remained active. The first thing they had done when they arrived was look for the first portal, the closest one to their location. They managed to catch the demon army off-guard, closing the portal when the vast majority of them were gone to raid a nearby village.

Naruto at first protested with Tyrael's decision to ignore the attack on the village, but the archangel silenced him stating that sometimes they had to make sacrifices to win a battle or win the war. That still didn't satisfy the blond, but he kept his mouth shut not wanting to anger the angel. After all, Tyrael was older then he was, he had more experience then him when it came to fighting and he was stronger from all aspects.

With a heavy heart the blond followed the angel, they closed the portal and waited for the demon army to return. They had prepared an ambush for them, an ambush into which the enemy had fallen prey.

Since the beginning it was only him and Tyrael, the angel stated that his knights should rest for a bit, it was also part of the angels plan to train Naruto more. He couldn't always rely on his knights; there would be times when he would be separated from them, when he would have to fight by himself. He had to be prepared for the worst.

The boy looked up as he saw an oasis in the distance; they had been walking for several hours in complete silence, not saying anything. Naruto was accustomed to this by now; he knew that Tyrael was a man of few words and that didn't bother him. He was happy to have him as his companion, not only was the blond learning from him constantly but if things got too messy the archangel would be there to get him out of the "oven".

"_We camp here for the night."_ The Archangel said as he sat down near the oasis and looked over at his reflection in the water.

The blond sat down underneath a palm tree and looked up at the sky, they had nothing on them, no tents, no sleeping bags, nothing. But that didn't bother them, they didn't need to carry all that stuff with them, most of them would be useless, especially in battles.

He closed his eyes and slowly fell asleep. Tyrael looked at the blond as he fell asleep and stood up, he walked around the oasis looking for materials to make a small camp fire, during nights it was pretty cold in the desert. Even with their robes protecting them they still needed a second source of heat, just in case.

It was midnight when the blond woke up; as he opened his eyes he noticed the small camp fire not far from him. Tyrael was sitting on the opposite side, looking at the fire. He seemed lost in thought; the blond realized that the archangel was remembering things from the past.

"_You still have questions am I right?"_ the Archangel asked while still looking down at the fire. The blond stood silent for several minutes thinking over the question that his partner had asked. He slowly nodded as he moved his body in a sitting position.

"_What exactly do you want to know?" _he inquired as the blond kept his silence once more, thinking about the question. There were a lot of things that he wanted to learn, there were a lot of questions he wanted to be answered, but there was one thing that he wanted to know the most.

"What is a Guardian?" he asked as the archangel didn't even react, like he didn't even hear the question. "What am I exactly?" yet again Tyrael stood motionless, his body movement betraying nothing. It was like he had expected the question.

"_Guardian…is an ancient term used for those chosen by God himself to keep the gates of Hell and Heaven closed." _He explained as the blond raised an eyebrow.

"Why Heaven as well?" he inquired as the angel continued speaking without any trance of emotion.

"_There must be a balance, you cannot keep one gate closed and the other open, it destroys the balance set in place at the beginning of time."_ He explained, a bit ambiguously, but he knew that the angel would not say anything else anymore regarding the matter.

"_The Guardians, like I said, were hand picked by God. At first they were those angels that proved themselves countless times, later it was human beings that possessed the will to take on the task."_ He said as the fire intensified startling the blond for a second, he watched in fascination as images appeared in the flames showing five, ten, fifteen angels that shared the same robe with the same design on its back, an angel and a demon facing each other, ready to strike, ready to fight.

"_For many years we managed to keep the gates in check, killing demons that tried to breach through, stopping renegade angels that tried to do as they pleased."_ Images showed angels battling demons in front of a massive gate, a gate that seemed familiar to the blond, yet he could not place it, he could not understand where he had seen it before.

"_However, the Lord of Hell soon grew tired of the … game … as he dubbed it."_ Tyrael explained as he showed a massive army of demons marching out of the gate he had seen a few seconds ago, the bodies of angels laying on the ground in a pool of blood, surrounded by the corpses of demons.

"_The first time we failed to protect the gates was in the dark ages, back then there were four generals of Hell. The worst of them was the Lord of Terror, know as Diablo. He would trick human champions even after he was dead…" _the angel said making the blond's eyes widen in amazement and fear.

"Wait…but I thought the only time humanity was involved was in the … medieval ages, or something like that." He said as the angel shook his head.

"_No, but they don't know that. The warriors that bravely fought in the Dark Ages are all gone, their spirits were destroyed or had forgotten about the war." _He said with sorrow as he slightly raised his head to look at the blond. He then looked back down at the fire which started changing again, this time showing the Archangel in what looked like a fortress.

"_We stood our ground against their forces, but in the end…I was the only Guardian left standing…Heaven had pulled its troops back to defend the gates, humanity seemed to be at the verge of destruction…"_ he said as it showed seven people, three of which were female. All of them wore strange armors, or robes.

"_It was thanks to a few brave souls that we managed to defeat Hell and close the gates, yet in the process of stopping Hell we lost said souls to the hands of demons…they were never seen or heard of again."_ He told the blond with sorrow evident in his voice, it seemed like the angel had a soft spot for those warriors.

"_I swore on that day that I would never neglect my duty as a Guardian…yet…I had failed horribly every time…"_ he said as he lowered his head in shame, the fire showed three more battles.

"_What you see before you are the other three wars between Heaven and Hell…two took place in the Medieval Ages, one was short, lasting only a few months, the other…it lasted six years." _The blond's eyes widened at the news, to think that a war between Heaven and Hell lasted that long.

"_We lost the second war…but we were lucky yet again…"_ the angel closed his fist and shook his head as he sighed _"…all Guardians, apart from me, sacrificed themselves to seal the gates, the angels and demons that were left on Earth eradicated themselves over the years…I was left alone…"_

"What do you mean…all apart from you?" asked the blond curiously, he couldn't actually believe that Tyrael would be afraid to give his life to keep the gates closed.

"_It was a vote…" _the angel replied sorrowfully _"…someone had to stay alive and make sure the gate doesn't open, someone had to stay alive and keep the gates in check…someone had to live to tell the tale to future Guardians…I was the unlucky one that got the chance to … live…"_ Tyrael practically spat the word out, it seemed to the blond that the angel hated the fact that he was alive, that luck had been on his side that day…or maybe it wasn't luck. No, it wasn't for Tyrael, the archangel had been ready to give his life away for the greater good, yet he was cursed to stay and watch the others die, to continue watching over the gates.

"_But…the Dark Lord never ceased his efforts in taking down humanity and Heaven…I still do not know what he did, but he altered the scroll that allowed humans to become Guardians." _The angel raised his hand over the fire; it shifted once more showing a large scroll, similar to the Forbidden Scroll the blond had stolen months ago from the Hokage tower.

"_This scroll was created after the Dark Age, to allow humans to become Guardians, the scroll would have chosen who was worthy to become a Guardian and who was not...you could say…it became a living entity, but it knew only two things. Accepted or Rejected." _He saw how people approached the scroll and tried to use it, he saw how some turned into angels like he did while others were consumed by fire and their bodies disappearing.

"_The Dark Lord corrupted the scroll…he made it so that each time a human became a Guardian the gates of Hell slowly opened. Nine chains held it locked down…before the third war…nine humans found the scroll by sheer luck…all nine had been accepted…thus the gates opened and the armies of Hell marched out. I could not stop them."_ The blond gazed into the fire, yet what he saw terrified him.

He grabbed his head in pain as memories flooded his head, he looked up at the archangel, his white eyes begging for help, yet Tyrael did not move. The boy lowered his head and screamed in pain, he closed his eyes, images playing before him.

_The ground around him was dead, the trees were on fire. He could see the corpses of demons and humans scattered on the battlefield, in the middle of the corpses stood Tyrael fighting the Wraith Lord in his body. He looked around, there was no one else on the battlefield apart from him, yet he could hear in the distance the footsteps of an army. His eyes widened as he saw the demon army marching towards Tyrael._

"_**It's over Guardian, kneel down and beg for mercy!"**__ the Wraith Lord ordered as he and Tyrael were in a deadlock._

"_I will never bow before you demon!" he shouted adding more pressure to the attack. _

_The world shifted around the blond and this time he found himself staring down at a massive army of humans. All of them equipped with weapons of all kinds, even ancient ones such as sword, bows, crossbows and many more. He could see those strange machines, their massive guns turning towards the approaching demon army._

"_We make our last stand here men! Show them what HUMANS are made off!" the apparent commander shouted as all the machines fired, one after another. The projectiles exploded in the middle of the demon army throwing demons left and right, or more likely, throwing their limbs around. _

_He heard the demons roar in anger as they charged forward, the soldier raised their weapons and started firing them. The small projectiles collided with the demons taking down hundreds. But as one fell two more rose to take its place, portals opened all around the battlefield, demons walked out of them killing any human that stood in its way. _

_The soldiers yelled out their battle cry as they bravely fought against the demons, but no matter how hard they tried it seemed like the demons had the upper hand in the battle. Naruto didn't know why, but the humans were loosing, he didn't understand why they would lose when they had such technology, he just couldn't understand where they had gone wrong._

_The image suddenly vanished as the blond found himself on top of a large structure. He looked around; there were many more structures like the one he was standing one. The vast majority were on fire, some were crumbling covering the sky with dust. Looking to his sides he spotted Tyrael, the archangel was holding his side, he was bleeding. _

"_Hold the line!" he heard shouted shout to the heavens, he looked down. There was a large number of people there, with machines he had never seen before, desperately fighting the demon army. The weapons they used were alien to the blond, he had never seen those kind of things before. They could kill from such a large distance, yet it seemed like they made little difference in the long run, the demons still reached them and ripped them to pieces, one by one. _

"_They fall so easily." He heard someone talk, only after he saw Tyrael glare towards him that he realized it was him that talked. _

"_This would not have happened if you heeded my warnings…" he growled as the man scoffed and raised his hand to the sky. The dark clouds dispersed as rays of light shot from the sky onto the battlefield, burning and killing anything that it touched. _

"_What do you think you are doing?" demanded Tyrael as he tried to stop the man only to fall on his knees, it seemed like the injury was taking a tow on him. _

"_Just sit and watch old man, I will end this war in the blink of an eye…" he said with arrogance._

The blond gasped for air as he opened his eyes, he didn't even realize he had been holding his breath while seeing those images. He brought his hands up to his face, he was shaking, but he didn't know why.

"_I hated him, that arrogant man that corrupted his allies, that turned angel against angel, brethren against brethren…I hated him, I swore I would kill him…yet in the final battle, all I could do is watch as he destroyed the world…all I could do is throw him into Hell and lock the gates behind him…" _Tyrael said with malice as his eyes bore into the blond's soul making him shiver even more.

"_I do not remember his name, nor do I wish to do so…all I remember is the status he received after killing the Dark One…"_ he said making the blond gulp for an unknown reason, if that man managed to kill the Lord of Hell it meant that he was incredibly powerful. _"…The Ninth Demon, the Demon of Blood and Destruction, the Demon Fox…" _

Naruto's eyes widened as he heard that, he couldn't possibly mean the Kyuubi? Right? There was no way that the fox sealed inside him was actually the current Lord of Hell. _"Yes young one…the person I despise the most in this world, the … thing … that I wish to destroy before I cease to exist is trapped inside of you."_

"It can't be…" the blond whispered in fright and shock as he moved away from the fire, fear evident in his eyes. He looked at the archangel, was he going to kill him? Was he going to end him now knowing that the demon he sought to destroy was inside of him?

"_Do not fear, I do not seek to harm you…I just told you what you needed to know so you can prepare for the future."_ Tyrael said as his eyes softened while looking at the blond. _"I still have a glimmer of hope, hope that you will not turn on us…because of that I am willing to risk it."_ The archangel said as he looked straight in the blond's eyes.

Naruto stood a few moments in silence to process the information, then he asked another thing that had been bothering him. "Why is it that only we can close the portals?" he asked.

"_If any angel could do it, it would destroy the balance. Think what a rogue angel would do…"_ he said as the blond looked down in deep thought. He nodded, slowly understanding the situation.

"However…what exactly are the portals?" Naruto asked as the angel smiled.

"_A part of the gate itself…larger demons cannot come out of these portals…but smaller ones can."_ He said as the blond tilted his head to the side.

"You say a part of it…then what is the point of closing them? Besides stopping the demon army from marching out of them of course."

"_If a certain number open in one location they could combine, becoming bigger. The bigger they are the bigger the demons that can march out of them…"_ Tyrael explained _"…however, do not ask me how the final Gate will open, in the past it was opened by the Generals, the Generals would step out of smaller portals, but I have yet to hear any of them step out, it makes me wonder if there are any Generals…the lunatic might have killed them as well…"_ Tyrael replied as he grew silent for the night, no matter what the blond asked the angel would not reply anymore, so he let it drop, for another time.

* * *

Sakura stood watching over the body of her teammate Sasuke Uchiha, she looked up towards their newest addition, a boy named Sai. The boy was currently placing the final traps around their small camp, making sure they would be prepared for any attack that might come during the night.

They had just survived, barely, an encounter with Orochimaru. It was strange that the man had let them go, he let them go but not unharmed. Sasuke had been bitten by the man and Sakura still didn't know what that meant, why had the sannin spared them? Why did he bite Sasuke? Her mind was completely shattered; the man was like a demon, she was afraid, afraid like that time on the bridge.

She wished Naruto was there, deep down she knew that if Naruto was there then everything would have been alright, that he would have defeated the rogue sannin like he did with those demons. But the blond was not here, he was gone, left for a unknown mission on the day he had just arrived home from a mission.

Sasuke acted strange when he learned that, he was more distant then ever before, he didn't focus on those D-rank missions and if anyone spoke badly of the blond he would immediately snap. When they took the first part of the chunnin exam he had snapped at Kiba who remarked that the dead last probably chickened out.

No one expected the raven haired boy to act like that, he grabbed the Inuzuka by the throat and tried to kill him by chocking him to death. His sharingan had developed a second tomoe at that time, but the Uchiha didn't seem to care. Were it not for Kabuto appearing at that moment Sakura was sure that Sasuke would have killed Kiba.

It was strange that no instructor interfered, much less said anything. But then again, when they signed those papers it clearly said that they could die during the exam, they didn't say who would kill them. It was then that Sakura understood that during the exam anyone could die, anyone could kill anyone. Old friends would kill their own friends just to pass the exam.

The thought scared her, she was confident at first that everything would go smoothly, that everything would be alright. But now, she was scared. Sasuke had been unconscious for the entire day, twisting and turning in the makeshift bed, sweating like he was having some kind of fever. She did her best to help him, but it wasn't enough, she prayed to the God's that the boy she loved would be alright in the morning.

Little did she know that while he slept his mind was under constant turmoil. Deep inside his dreams, his nightmares, he was forced to relieve the same event over and over again. Seeing the deaths of those she loved, seeing the deaths of her mother and father by the hands of her brother, Itachi.

Standing in the same spot Satsuki tried to wake herself up, but no matter how hard she tried she kept seeing the same event over and over again. She felt her mind crumbling, she desperately called out for help, she called for her father for her mother even for her brother, she called for Naruto, she desperately called him. In the end, it was her brother that answered, but not in the way she wanted.

He mocked her, taunted her as he killed her family over and over again, as he stomped on the bodies of the dead and maimed them. She could see her inner-persona, the child that had been traumatized on that day, she could see herself crying, shouting to the heavens that she would get the power to take revenge over her brother.

"**You want power…"** a voice said startling the girl, she looked towards her younger self and saw her looking up at her. One of her eyes was slitted and had a sickly yellow color to it. **"…I can give you that power, the power you seek to kill your brother…"** she said with a grin that scared Satsuki.

"No…go away…leave me alone…" she cried, she didn't want that kind of power, even she knew that it was dangerous. She remembered the events on the bridge, she didn't want to turn into a monster, into a demon, doing so would mean losing her humanity, but more importantly, it would mean losing the boy she loved so much.

"**Those feelings…are unnecessary…"** the little girl said as a tear rolled down her cheek. **"…he will come…and kill him…"** she said as Satsuki shook her head and cried, Naruto could defend himself, he took down a army of demons, there was no way that he would be defeated by Itachi.

"**But its true…Itachi is worse then any demon…you know it…he's the Devil himself…"** the girl said once more as Satsuki looked up, her eyes widened in fear as she screamed. Before her stood Itachi, in his hand was Naruto's body, his hollow eyes bore into her, scaring her, freezing her in place.

She shook her head and covered her eyes, it wasn't true, there was no way it was true. Naruto wouldn't die like that, he wouldn't leave this world until he accomplished his dream. He was too stubborn to die, she would let him die. She wanted to be with him, she wanted to have him by her side.

"**But he wouldn't want a weakling…"** the little girl said once more as a figure stepped in front of Satsuki. She shakily looked up, before her stood Naruto, he was glaring at her, a scowl present on his face.

"**Weaklings have no place with me."** He told her with a scoff as he glared her down. The girl's mind, fragile as it was already was on the brink of shattering. Hearing those words made her despair. She was shaking uncontrollably, she was crying, she wanted it all to end.

Suddenly a warm wind blew towards her as she felt a pair of hands grab her in a warm embrace, her eyes widened as she saw two large wings moving from behind her and wrapping around her. She looked to her left side as she felt something placed on her shoulder; she saw someone, or more precisely, someone's cowl.

"_Don't listen to what they say Satsuki-chan…you are better then that, you know me better then that…" _the person said with a kind voice, she recognized the voice instantly.

"Naruto…" she said sobbing silently as the blond tightened his hold on the girl, she slowly brought her hands up to his and touched them.

"…**he lies to you, he will throw you away, I can give you the power to protect yourself, your future…"** the little version of Satsuki said as the blond brought the girl closer to him and whispered soothing words into her ear.

"I don't need power…" She said with a low voice as she held the blond's hands harder. "…I don't want your promises for power!" she shouted as the image of the blond in front of her vanished, as the little girl dissipated into thin air and the world around them changed until they were floating into nothingness. The world around them was white, there was nothing around them, it was only them.

"_You did great…"_ the blond whispered with pride evident in his voice as the girl lowered her head and started crying. The blond let her go and stood up, he walked around her until he was in front of her. He kneeled down and raised her head, making contact with her eyes. He gave her a soft smile making her sniff and try to look away, like she was ashamed of herself.

"_Why don't you want to face me?"_ he asked curiously as the girl broke down crying again. Naruto smiled sadly, her mind was incredibly fragile at the moment. He took her in the arms and wrapped his wings around her, he continued whispering soothing words, trying to calm her down.

"How can I face you?" she asked between sobs. "When I lied to you about me this whole time…" she said as the blond chuckled softly.

"_You had your reasons, I don't hate you for that, I can never hate you…not after everything you've done for me."_ He said as the girl looked up with curious eyes.

"But…I've done nothing." She said not understanding what the blond had said, he looked at her and smiled, she could see his smile under his cowl yet she could not see his eyes.

"_Oh but you've done…"_ he said _"…you acknowledged me when others would not…"_ the world around them shifted showing a eight year old Naruto arguing with a eight year old Sasuke, about what, they could not hear. But in the end, as they parted ways, they could both see the smiles on the children's faces.

"…_you helped me when no one else would…"_ he said as this time it showed a ten year old Naruto sparring by himself, that is until the ten year old Sasuke appeared on the academy ground and taunted the blond making him attack him, the two sparring until Iruka appeared on the field and broke them apart.

"…_it was you that listened to my problems…"_ this time it showed Satsuki, in her original body talking with the angel before her in the clearing they met months ago.

"…_and it was you…that care for me…so much…"_ he said with a smile as her heart skipped a beat when it showed them kissing, she remembered that night, she could not forget it.

But then those words echoed through her mind as she looked down, tears spilling once more. "He'll just take it away…he will come and take it away once more…" she said while trembling.

The blond brought her closer and whispered gently in her ear. "_And I will be prepared, you will be prepared…together we will make sure he will never take away anything from you…" _he told her as her eyes widened and she started crying on his shoulder.

Naruto smiled as he gently rubbed her back. "Do you promise?" she asked between sobs once more as the blond pulled back a little to look at her face, he smiled as he wiped her tears from her eyes.

"_I promise…it's a promise of a lifetime…"_ he said as he drew closer and kissed her gently on the lips, startling the girl. He pulled back and chuckled at her reaction.

"Baka…" she said with a weak smile as the blond started fading away "…wait…Naruto!" she shouted scared, not understanding why he was leaving.

"_My time is up…I can no longer sustain myself here…but I promise you, I will come home soon and we will meet again…"_ he told her while placing his hand on her cheek.

"No, don't go!" she shouted as tears threatened to appear once more "Please, stay longer…" she called out, but the blond just smiled and shook his head sadly. Moments later he vanished leaving the girl alone in the white world, the world itself constantly replaying her memories of the blond, everything she had seen him to, everything they had done until the present day. She smiled weakly as she vanished from her mindscape.

* * *

Naruto opened his eyes, it was morning already. He looked up at the Archangel who had just finished clearing any signs that they were here last night. Tyrael looked at the blond, expecting the boy to talk.

"She's alright…" he said with a smile as the angel nodded and motioned for the blond to stand up and follow him. Naruto did as he was told without question; he stood up and followed the angel as they walked out of the oasis and into the desert once more. They were slowly making their way to the next set of portals to close them.

While they were walking the blond thought about Satsuki, when he heard her frantic screams he was scared that something happened to her, that something bad was happening at that very moment. His fears were on the mark that time, she was in trouble and he was glad he was able to help her.

He was still a bit shocked by the revelation that Sasuke Uchiha was actually a female, or more importantly, that the person he considered a brother and a rival was actually the girl that had been so nice to him since he met her and the same girl that he kissed on that night. He was shocked to realize that back in the academy, before the team placement, when he kissed Sasuke he was actually kissing a girl. It calmed him a bit; the thought of kissing another guy was a scary prospect.

It would take some time for the blond to adjust to what he had learned, he looked up at the angel wanting to ask him a question, but he didn't know if he would reply.

"_You can…"_ Tyrael said making the blond lose his balance _"…but…protect yourself, your emotions, for if she were to die at demon hands and you would head on the path of self destruction, I will personally put an end to you." _Tyrael said emotionlessly making the blond gulp and slowly nod.

Deep down he was glad that he was allowed to be with Satsuki, he had found someone to love. He vowed that he would protect her no matter what; he would protect her against anyone and anything, even if it was himself.

He knew how much she suffered after her brother's betrayal, he wanted to be at her side and make her happy, even if it would be rarely or for a short time. He knew that one day he would vanish from the Elemental Countries to fight along side the rest of the angels on the other continent. But he felt like it was the right thing to do; he wanted to be hear support, her beacon of hope, if only for a short time.

For two days the angels walked through the desert, neither one saying a single word, each one of them thinking about something else. The blond had a smile on his face most of the time as he kept hearing Satsuki pray for his safe return. That feeling when he heard her, it was breath taking, he loved that feeling. Knowing that someone wanted him, it made his heart race like never before. He knew for sure that he loved her now, he just wanted to tell her now, he couldn't wait to tell her.

Despite everything that was going on, his mind was still focused on the girl. If he were to die, at least he would die with a easy heart, knowing that someone had loved him for who he was. The blond shook his head, he would not die, not until he saved the world, not until he was sure that everyone was safe. He wanted to create safe place for the family he might have in the future, and if he would not have one, then at least create a safe future for the girl he cherishes so much. That he would do, that he promised himself that he would do no matter what.

"_The next portal is on top of that mountain…"_ Tyrael said all of a sudden pointing in front of him. The blond looked up trying to spot the portal, yet he could not see it in the thick dust storm. _"…in time you will feel their location…"_ the archangel stated as a polearm materialized in his hand. The blond unsheathed his sword and followed the angel.

It didn't take long for them to reach the top, they were not surprised when the saw a large army of demons waiting for them. The army consisted of skeletons and sand demons. The sand demons had the shapes of human beings, yet their entire bodies were made out of sand. They carried two weapons, either two swords, two axes, or one short sword and a large war axe.

In the back they could see Vortexes, demon spirits that could not take a body so they created one out of the sand, they were like miniature cyclones, constantly spinning, yet their eyes stayed in the same place. Their large arms had two bracers on them with gems in the middle. Tyrael explained when they first encountered them that the vast majority of the Vortexes had been mages in the past that had succumbed to greed and used their magic to get wealthy, breaking holy laws that had been set by God himself. Needles to say, their souls had been punished for the acts they committed.

Near the portal stood at least ten Greater Mummies, unlike the normal ones these ones were much taller, their heads had the skull of either a jackal or a raccoon, their left hand was replaced with a massive scythe and they could reanimate the dead. Destroy a skeleton and they could bring it back to life, that and they had quite the arsenal of spells to defend themselves.

The blond smirked as he saw another behemoth skeleton in the back, he was the leader it seemed. Unlike last time he knew how to take it down now.

"_I will deal with the leader; I will leave the rest of them to your hands." _Tyrael said with a smirk as he knew that the blond would have wanted to fight the behemoth, yet he had other plans for Naruto. The boy in question sighed as his shoulders slumped and nodded weakly.

Tyrael chuckled as he vanished from his spot, followed by the blond moments later.

* * *

"_Commander!" _an angel shouted towards the archangel who looked up from his documents. _"There are reports of numerous portals opening in the elemental countries!" _

"_What?"_ the man shouted with fright evident in his voice as he stood up. _"How big? How many are coming out? I want details!"_ he ordered as the angel took a step back in fright.

"_They are small for now, too small to even pinpoint their exact location…"_ he said with a gulp as the commander sat down to think _"…also, they are too small for demons to even march out of them…we don't understand what it's really happening."_ He said as the commander rummaged through his documents, trying to find a particular one.

Tyrael had asked him to be on the look out for any specific information on the portals, information on the larger ones. While the report said about portals too small for the demons to fit in, it was still disturbing.

He grinned as he found the document he had been looking for; he skimmed through it reading the contents, reading only what seemed important. They his eyes widened in horror at what he saw, at what Tyrael had reported more then a thousand years ago.

Thinking fast, the Commander took a blank scroll and started writing in it. Once he was done he read the contents and nodded to himself, he rolled it up and sealed it. Then he stood up and handed it to the angel before him.

"_Take it to Tyrael, fast! He must know of this development!"_ the angel nodded as he ran out of the tent leaving the commander alone.

The archangel slumped down and sighed, a heavy sigh. He looked over the old documents, reading them again. He shook his head as he made a small prayer.

* * *

**A/N: A small filler chapter to make the transition with the next arc. Hope I did not displease, I tried to make it as interesting as possible while keeping the good stuff for next time … hehe **

**If you spotted any errors feel free to PM me and tell me, I will make sure to correct them. It's a bit late now for that and I want to go to bed and yet leave you guys with something to read…**


	10. Stronghold

**Note: **Ah, before you read the chapter just a few things I want to say. The reason updating took so long was because I wasn't pleased with the chapter, I rewrote it over and over again for the past two months hoping to get something good and in the end this is what I got. Truth be told, I like this better then all the other versions, but in my opinion it's still not perfect. So I apologize for that.

Second, I really need to do this, if I don't vent this I will explode…did anyone realize what massive plot hole Kishimoto just created? If the Uzumaki's were hunted and killed because of who they were…then why wasn't there any mention about this regarding Naruto? Or…how come no one realized just who he was? I mean come on! Don't they teach history in the academy? What did Iruka do? Did he miss about that? Did he forget to say about the great seal masters that lived in Whirlpool country? Damn…way to go Kishimoto, I love that plot hole…

Lastly…expect a new story shortly…I know, I know…I shouldn't do it but the heat waves are messing with my head and I wrote two new stories and some chapters for my current ones…oh well, hopefully I won't regret this in the future.

**Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto (or what I pick from other places)**

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* * *

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**The Archangel – Chapter 10: Stronghold**

Ninja checkpoints were always horrible, unless you were a ninja from that very country you would lose a lot of time at the checkpoints. They would scavenge through your things looking for contraband or anything out of place. The worst thing that could happen at a checkpoint, apart from loosing a lot of your time waiting in line, would be to have them think you are a potential spy.

Ninja's were always paranoid, one wrong move, one wrong item in your inventory and the next thing you know a ANBU appears next to you and asks you to follow him in a small cottage they usually have near the checkpoints. And then, interrogation after interrogation; this applied to all countries that had a hidden village, it wasn't that bad, as long as you didn't try to look suspicious and answered all the questions you had to answer.

However, today – unlike other days, the checkpoint leading towards Konoha was empty; it had been like that for a day or so. All those that wanted to have a seat for the chunnin exams final stage had already booked a ticket and were already present in the stadium, anyone trying to get into Konoha now to view the matches would have no luck whatsoever.

Four ninja's were currently stationed at the checkpoint; they were bored out of their minds. Sitting and watching the empty road was not their idea of spending their week and to think they would have to wait for one more day until someone came from Konoha to relieve them.

Suddenly, one of the ninja's looked down the road, the rest followed suit as they had felt something approaching. They could also hear something that sounded very familiar; it was like a large number of horses were approaching the checkpoint. They tensed as they looked at each other, a single thought passed through their minds. What if bandits were approaching? They weren't sure, they could only sense one chakra source and even that one seemed very … weird.

The leader made several signs with his hand as the rest nodded and jumped from their spot, assuming defensive positions. A precaution in case it was an enemy approaching. However, what appeared before them was not what they expected.

A large number of riders appeared from the forest, all of them clad in armor and in front of them an angel. Behind the riders were a couple of men – clad in armor – running, how they could keep up with the horses speed was beyond them.

The group passed through the checkpoint without even stopping, the angel however jumped in front of the ninja and looked at him straight in the eye.

"Head to Konoha! Immediately!" he ordered as he jumped away and started running after the small army, they counted up to eighty or so.

"What the?" the ninja asked as his teammates appeared next to him. Moments later the ANBU stationed at the checkpoint with them appeared next to them, he seemed tense.

"Head to Konoha." He ordered as the ninja looked at him strangely "I will take the blame if it's a false alarm." He said as he jumped away and followed the riders and the angel. The ninja's wasted no time as they also jumped down and followed their comrade.

* * *

Total chaos, the village of Konoha was in total chaos. The final stage of the chunnin exams had started just a few hours ago, everything was fine. That was until Uchiha Sasuke started fighting Subaku no Gaara. The battle started like any other battle in the chunnin exams, that is, until the Uchiha hit his adversary with the Chidori. From there, everything went downhill.

The sand-nin ran from the stadium after trying to crush the Uchiha with his sand, a genjutsu was cast on the spectators and ninja's from both Sunagakure and from Sound attacked everyone at the stadium. The ninja's trapped in the stadium were more than sure that all of Konoha was being assaulted by the two factions.

Kakashi had sent Sasuke after the sand-nin to finish the job, telling the Uchiha that he should kill if necessary. Instead of following his pupil, the jounin directed his attention to the enemy ninja's that were picking off innocent people, trapped in the genjutsu. He attacked them without a second thought; he wouldn't let them harm the people of Konoha.

The ninja's in the village weren't fairing any better, if things couldn't have gotten worse, after that initial attack strange creatures started emerging from the shadows…fighting both the defenders and attackers.

Creatures made out of fire burst from the ground and breed from the buildings that were on fire, they spread the fire to more buildings in hopes of creating more of them and overwhelming the three ninja factions.

Strange red creatures with horns, human body and claw like hands appeared from out of nowhere, ripping unsuspecting ninja's in a matter of seconds. Their large swords cut through their targets like a knife through butter. While the first attacks claimed many ninja's on both sides, both the defenders and attackers soon caught on and started defending themselves whenever these creatures appeared.

But that didn't stop the war they were waging against each other. Despite the fact that unholy creatures attacked them whenever they were weakened or weren't paying attention to them, they still fought against each other. The ninja's of Konoha tried to talk with their attackers when the first wave of … monster attacked, but they would not listen, it was like they were driven by some unknown force to crush Konoha no matter what.

The gates had fallen, at first to the hands of the two attacking ninja factions, later to the hands of the monsters. They didn't dare to go back at the gates and reclaim it, nor did they care, they kept pushing not thinking what would happen if the monsters boxed them in.

As the blond and his knights drew closer they could see the smoke in the distance. The angel cursed as he started running faster, he hoped that he wasn't too late. As the gates drew closer the blond could feel something watching them, he looked around while running, trying to figure out where the enemy was hiding, from where they were watching him and his men.

"_Imps!"_ one of the knights shouted as a large creature suddenly jumped from a tree and on top of a rider. The rider elbowed the demon which howled in pain as it tried to slash the knight. The knight however managed to block the attack and kick the imp off his horse; with a swift move he unsheathed his sword and cut the demons head off.

More imps suddenly appeared chasing after the blond and his men; the creatures had a human shape, grey skin with bony scales on their arms and ten eyes, they were a full head taller then a normal human being. The imps screeched making the blond and a few knights cover their ears.

"Don't stop!" he shouted while glaring at the demons, they moved in for the kill. He unsheathed his sword and ducked under an imp that tried to pounce him; he turned around and cut the demon in half making its body disperse in small red tendrils.

They fought their way to the gates, cutting down the imps that tried to pounce them. Suddenly the blond realized that they were pulling back, he saw his knights pulling out their shields; moments later he realized why they did that. The imps continued to follow them by jumping from tree to tree all the time throwing small fireballs towards them.

Naruto avoided all the fireballs he could while the knights simply blocked the attacks with their shields. "Take them down already!" the boy ordered as several knights took their bows in their hands and started firing arrows towards the imps.

He turned his gaze towards the gate that was closing, two strange demons stood at the gate, channeling energy. They were large – like the imps, at least a head taller then a normal human being – had a white colored humanoid body and they were standing in a semi-crouched pose. Their elongated arms ended with bloody tumor-like bloated hands with huge inward-retracted claws.

The demons raised their arms in the air as they were surrounded by a pentagram which extended around them. Three imps popped out of each pentagram and turned to face the approaching force. Naruto growled as he raised his head and charged head first into the small blockade sending two imps flying in a nearby building and cutting a third in half.

Moments later the riders crashed into the remaining demons cutting them in half, one of the demon summoners' teleported away before the blade could strike however.

"_Arch-Viles…"_ one of the knights stated as the small army came to a stop inside the village. The blond turned towards them.

"You all know what to do, assist the Konoha ninjas in any way you can." He ordered as the knights saluted and ran off in various directions. The blond turned his attention towards the stadium, he could feel the old man fighting there with someone, then he turned towards the opposite direction where he could feel a rather powerful demon emerging. He could vaguely sense his teammate's chakra there; however, he hoped that he was wrong about that.

The blond turned towards the arena and jumped on a nearby building, making his way towards the battle between the Hokage and the unknown ninja.

* * *

Sarutobi panted as he looked at the forms of his enemies. To think that Orochimaru would attack Konoha like this and that he would use the first and second Hokage to kill him. The man must be really desperate. The old man looked towards the remains of a coffin that he had managed to stop, if he hadn't reacted when he did he would have died as soon as the fight began. There was no way he could stand toe to toe with the fourth Hokage.

Taking a deep breath, the aged Kage turned to face his old student, his eyes hardened at the man before him. Orochimaru was grinning at his victory, just a little more and the old Kage would be dead and he would have his revenge. Nothing would stop him after this from destroying Konoha.

"Go!" he ordered as the two dead Kage's charged the Sandaime who jumped out of the way in time. He grimaced knowing that he wouldn't be able to stop them, he would need to summon the Shinigami.

Suddenly, a loud bang was heard above them and the entire place started to shake. Orochimaru turned towards one of his subordinates demanding to know what was happening; to his shock he learned that something was shattering the barrier. Before their very eyes the barrier shattered and a person dropped in front of the Sandaime, slamming the Shodaime in the ground.

The pale man's eyes widened at the figure before him, a living, breathing angel. Sarutobi sighed in relief and smiled knowing who it was. He was lucky he appeared when he did, maybe now the odds would be in his favor.

"I made it in time…" the blond stated as he stood up and lowered his sword, he looked towards the pale man and scowled "…using the bodies and souls of the dead to do your bidding, you are like a demon…"

Orochimaru grinned as he pointed Kusanagi towards the blond. "And what are you going to do about it?" he asked as the two dead Kage's appeared near the man.

"Even the odds." The blond stated as he vanished from his spot and appeared behind the first Hokage. With a swift motion he thrust his hand into the man's neck and pulled it out. The kunai with the seal controlling the soul and body came out; he grabbed the kage and vanished from his spot before Orochimaru could do anything.

He reappeared next to Sandaime and gently lowered the first Hokage who was shaking his head and groaning. Naruto looked up towards the second Hokage, trying to use the same trick again would prove useless, Orochimaru was most likely expecting it now seeing how tense he was.

The blond turned towards the first Hokage and looked at him who looked back. "Can you stand?" he asked as the man nodded not trusting his voice. "You think you can handle them now?" Naruto asked Sarutobi who nodded. Moments later the ANBU commander and his squad appeared next to their Kage and assumed a defensive position.

"We will take it from here." The commander stated as the blond nodded. He turned his attention towards the northern part of the village, the power he felt before was increasing rapidly.

Leaving the ninja's the fight their own battle the blond moved towards the source of power. The stadium was the only place that was not attacked by demons it seemed, as the blond left the stadium and arrived at the village's streets things started to change. Destruction was all around him, it reminded him of Yasaku, dead bodies were littered on the street, cut down by ninja's or demons.

From time to time he could see a demon emerge from the shadow striking down a ninja, he didn't stop to assist. No matter how much he wanted to stop and assist the ninja he had more pressing matters to attend to, if he was correct and the power emanating from the northern part of the village was that of a bijuu then things could get very ugly.

He could see him knights assisting the ninja's wherever they could by engaging the demons, they were ordered not to fight against the other ninja's – of Sound and Suna – they would stand no chance against a ninja after all.

The screams of death slowly vanished as the blond entered the forest, beyond Konoha's gates. He scowled as he passed by Shikamaru and his jounin-sensei, they didn't notice him as they were preoccupied fighting several Sound shinobi. The blond's scowl depend when he came across Shino fighting against a Sand-nin. Why were they here in the first place?

As he got closer to the source of demonic energy his senses picked up the familiar chakra signature of his teammate. The blond cursed silently, wondering what the Uchiha was doing in a place like this, why she would chase a jinchuuriki in the first place. His eyes were temporarily blinded as he entered a small clearing; crouching down on the tree branch he analyzed the area before him.

The Uchiha – still covered in the genjutsu – was kneeling on the ground holding her right arm, she was bleeding profoundly. In front of her stood a red headed boy with the kanji for Love on his forehead, everything apart from his eyes and left arm was normal. His arm looked like a massive claw made out of sand, it was covered in blood.

"Die!" the red head shouted as his arm extended towards the Uchiha. Naruto narrowed his eyes as he jumped down in front of her and raised his shield, blocking the claw. He raised his sword up and lowered it down on the claw like arm cutting it down. The red head screamed in pain as he retracted his arm, it was slowly growing back.

"You alright?" Naruto asked as he looked towards the girl with the corner of his eyes; she nodded letting a smile appear on her face.

Satisfied, the blond turned to face his adversary. The boy was howling in pain throwing curses at the blond, his entire body was slowly being consumed by the demon sealed inside of him; its features were slowly appearing before their very eyes, the boy's body was slowly consumed by sand forming a raccoon, the demon locked eyes with the blond and howled.

"_**A Guardian! After all this time!"**_ the beast shouted, laughing at the sight before it. _**"It won't be long until Kyuubi takes another one! You will soon join us fool!"**_ Shukaku shouted as it charged the blond.

Naruto's eyes widened as he grabbed Satsuki and jumped out of the way, the demon crashed into the tree behind them tearing it down. It roared in anger as its prey escaped its clutches.

The blond landed on a nearby tree branch and gently placed Satsuki down, he looked towards the dust covered area. "Stay here." He ordered as he jumped down.

As the smoke cleared Naruto could see the enraged demon standing in a small crater. The angel moved his sword behind him and then swiped towards Shukaku hurling a large fire ball towards it. A wall of sand burst from the ground blocking the attack, the demon then ran towards the blond with its claws raised.

The blond ducked under its swipe and jumped over the beasts' tail as it tried to swipe his legs with it. He raised his shield and blocked a punch, he then slammed the shield into the mini-Shukaku's chest making it take a step back. He grabbed its right arm and spun around, finally, the blond hurled the demon over his shoulder into a nearby tree. The impact ripped the tree in half as it crashed down on the demon.

Shukaku locked eyes with the blond; it grabbed the tree and rose back to its feet. The demon slammed the massive tree on the ground and then raised it above its head. With a mighty roar the demon used the tree as a massive club and lowered it towards the blond with the intent to squash him. Naruto jumped out of the way in the last second, the ground shook violently as the tree made impact with it. The tree itself broke in half from the impact.

With a growl the sand demon threw the damaged tree away and slammed its claws into the ground. Sand erupted around it, forming five dragon heads that shot towards the blond. Naruto jumped back as the first one crashed into the ground, he ducked under the second and cut the third in half with his sword. He looked to his sides and jumped in the air as two dragon heads collided into each other.

Naruto smirked as he flapped his wings and maintained himself in the air, the demon below growled as sand shot towards the blond. The angel dodged the attacks with ease, he twirled his sword and then pointed it towards the sand demon, a bolt of lighting shot from the sky hitting the demon and making it roar in pain and anger.

The blond turned towards the demon and started descending at great speed. He sheathed his sword and took out five piece of paper with ancient writings on them. Shukaku narrowed his eyes as he saw the blond approaching; he raised a dome of sand and shot spears towards the blond. The boy's eyes widened as he moved to the side avoiding several projectiles, he twirled in the air barely missing another hail.

As he reached the dome he grabbed on to it, using his left hand the blond punched the dome and channeled energy through his hand. Cracks started to appear in the demo and rays out light shot out from the cracks, in seconds the dome shattered revealing a stunned Shukaku under it The blond smirked as he grabbed the demon and slapped the seals on its head, arms and legs.

"Time to sleep…" the blond whispered as his gauntlet started glowing. "Seal!" he shouted hitting the demon in the chest with his gauntlet. The seals' glow intensified covering both of them in a bright light.

* * *

Naruto smiled at the boy before him, said boy was cowering in fear at the sight of the blond angel. He tried backing away from the blond, to find some place to hide, but in this strange world where everything was white he could not see any place to run to.

"So what did he tell you?" the blond asked calmly, trying not to scare the boy anymore. From what it seemed, he had been traumatized by the demon, his life had been worse then his and he couldn't even imagine through what the boy had to go to just survive.

"Stay away!" the red head shouted in fear trying to find something to defend himself with.

"Did he say I will kill you?" the blond asked tilting his head to the side, he had an idea that the demon would whisper those words to the boy ever since he laid his eyes on him.

The red head grabbed his head and his eyes widened in fright as he staggered away from the blond. Naruto crouched down and looked at the boy calmly. "Whatever he told you, he lied to you…"

"You lie!" the boy shouted in despair. "Mother wouldn't betray me!" he screamed.

"Are you sure?" the blond asked as the boy suddenly started sputtering incoherent words, like he himself wasn't sure anymore.

"Mother has always been there…" the boy whispered as the blond gave a sad smile knowing what he meant.

"But that doesn't mean it will never change, at the first sight of freedom he will take it, he will leave and he will kill you in the process…that's what demons do after all." The blond explained noticing that the red head tense as he heard the word 'demon'.

"Don't be fooled by what humans say, fear causes them to think irrationally…you are not a demon, the one sealed inside of you is however…" the blond explained as Gaara started shaking and sobbing slightly.

"Then why? Why didn't I have any friends? Why did father tried to kill me?" he asked, he listed a lot of people that – the blond presumed he had killed in self defense – tried to kill him.

"Human fear what they do not understand, I was like you in the past, hated by everyone." The boy looked up at the angel incredulously; he was an angel after all, no? To his surprise the blond started snickering. "I wasn't always like this…"

"Then how…?" the red head asked with a low voice.

"I proved them wrong." The blond said with a grin as he bent forward. "I had people that weren't afraid of me, it was a start, from there I got friends and people started seeing me in a whole new light." He said as the boy looked down in sadness. "Don't you have anyone?" he asked as the boy stood quiet, thinking.

"My sister…and brother…" he whispered as the blond nodded. "But they are afraid of me…" he continued as the blond placed his hand on the boy's shoulder.

"Then change, show them you are their brother and not the demon inside of you…" he said as the boy looked up. "…then you will have friends, people will see you for who you truly are and what is sealed inside of you will matter not."

Gaara was silent, he didn't know how to reply or if what the angel was telling him was the truth. "If you want…I will be one of your friends." The blond said with a smile as Gaara's eyes widened in surprise. "And I will even leave you with a gift." He said as he stood up and backed away a little.

A roar echoed around them as Shukaku suddenly appeared behind the blond, numerous chains were holding him in place and each time the demon struggled the chains would tighten more pulling it to the ground. Its youki was slowly being drained by the chains, where the youki was taken the red head had no idea.

"Shukaku will no longer bother you, you will be able to sleep and these chains will hold him in place as long as your willpower is strong enough." The blond said as the boy looked at him with wide eyes. "As a bonus, the chains will take a very small portion of its youki and slowly convert it into chakra, then it will be given to you to use." Naruto said with a smile as the red head was left speechless.

Naruto looked up and smiled. "Times up…they've come to pick you up." He said as the world flashed around them.

* * *

"Gaara!" a girl shouted as the boy in question slowly opened his eyes. "Are you alright?" she sounded scared, he hadn't realized until now that she cared about him.

"Temari…" he whispered as Kankuro suddenly appeared next to him and lifted him to his feet. "…I'm sorry…for what I did in the past…" he whispered as the girl looked at him with wide eyes.

"Come on; let's get out of here before Konoha-nin show up." Kankuro said desperately as Temari moved to help her brother in carrying the red head.

Before they vanished, Gaara scanned the area trying to see where the blond was, but there was nothing around them, only the forest and the destruction from their fight. He remembered the angel's words and smiled slightly as he looked towards his siblings.

As the Suna-nin vanished from the area the angel materialized in the clearing. A small smile graced his lips, his initial plan was to try and destroy Shukaku, but doing so would have meant to kill the boy as well. In his mind, the best solution was to gather allies, even if said allies were the jinchuuriki.

"Naruto?" he heard Satsuki call as she staggered in the clearing, her genjutsu had faded. He walked over to her and motioned for her to sit down. She complied as she sat next to a tree.

"I can heal your wounds, but you will have to reveal them." He said as the girl blushed and nodded. She took off her shirt revealing her skin and bra.

"Don't get…any funny ideas…" she whispered as the blond chuckled and placed his hand over the wound on her shoulder. He closed his eyes as his hand started glowing white, she could hear him whisper in a strange language. Despite the fact she didn't understand what he was whispering, the words were calming.

She felt a burning sensation on her shoulder and by instinct she tried to pull herself away. The blond placed his right hand on her hip making her gasp and look at him, he still had his eyes closed and he was still whispering. The sensation intensified as the girl grit her teeth; she looked at his right and grabbed it, holding it tightly.

Moments later the blond stopped whispering and retracted his hand, the pain vanished like it was never there in the first place. She looked at her shoulder and was amazed; there wasn't even a scar there.

"Now, the next one." The blond said moving his hand down to her left side. He looked up at her and smiled as he moved his right hand behind her and brought her close to him. "This will sting a bit more." He whispered as the girl braced herself.

Once more the blond closed his eyes and started whispering the same words, the sensation appeared faster then before. Satsuki shook as her brain registered the intense pain; she wrapped her arms around his arm and grit her teeth, trying to hold her screams back.

After a few minutes the blond stopped whispering and opened his eyes, he moved back and looked at the panting girl. He gently moved his hand over her cheeks and smiled as the girl started smiling towards him. He offered her his hand and helped her back on her feet; she took her shirt and placed it back on her body.

"If you tell anyone…" she threatened as she glared towards the blond. Naruto snickered at her behavior. "Don't think I've forgotten what you did in class…before team placement." She said with a low growl as the blond laughed nervously.

"Sorry about that…" he said scratching his cheek in embarrassment.

Satsuki looked at him and smiled. "But I will overlook it…for helping me, twice." She said as she bent forward and pecked him on the cheek.

Naruto smiled and nodded as he offered his hand once more. She happily took his hand and following him back to the village. As they were walking she thought about covering herself back in her genjutsu, but she didn't feel like doing it anymore. Looking towards the blond she wondered how life would be if she decided not to hide anymore.

* * *

Knight Commander Klaus scanned the area before him, the knights were dragging the bodies of the demons and pilling them up for their lord to burn them, to destroy them. He looked towards the ninja's that were helping them. He was surprised they did not attack them when they first showed up. Maybe the village leader had something to do with it, maybe he told them that one day they would appear in this village.

No, that couldn't be it; surely their leader couldn't predict something like this. Not even their lord could predict this. Maybe they trust them since they focused on the demons and only on the demons; even so, these ninja were strange. Back when he was still alive the warriors of his time would have killed off anyone that seemed suspicious.

He looked up as he heard someone approaching, he bowed before their lord as he appeared in the market, behind him was a girl he had never seen. "So its over." The blond stated as the knight nodded and stood up.

"_We are currently gathering the bodies of the demons and piling them up for you to cleanse them."_ He stated, the girl behind the angel shook slightly as he talked, it took a while to get used to their voices.

"Very well…casualties?" he asked as the commander's eyes beamed with pride.

"_None…"_ he said as the blond was surprised, it went better then he had expected. _"…the element of surprise was on our side, we took them out before they realized we were there."_ He said before frowning slightly. _"We did have some…accidents."_

Naruto raised an eyebrow at that wondering what Klaus meant. "Elaborate."

"_A few were caught in ninja techniques, their bodies were destroyed but their souls not…"_ he said as the blond nodded, pleased with what he had heard.

"Very well then, carry on." He ordered as the commander nodded and returned to his duty.

Naruto scanned the area around him assessing the damage; a lot of buildings were destroyed, laying in rubble now. Smoke was rising towards the sky, signatures that there had been a battle here. The stench of death was overwhelming here, it seemed like this is where a large battle took place. Looking over the number of dead humans, from all three sides, it would seem like there had been a big battle here.

He turned and looked at Satsuki who was having a hard time keeping it together, she kept looking at the bodies of the demons and ninja's and was trying not to breathe the air. He placed his hand on her shoulder to calm her a little; the girl looked up at him and nodded, whispering a small 'thank you'.

"Commander." The blond said as said commander turned around. "Tell the ninja to line up their wounded, to reveal their wounds so that I can heal them." He ordered as the man bowed before running to relay the message to the ninja around the market place.

Minutes later the blond was attending to a large number of injured shinobi. They were all lined up on stretchers in the middle of the market place. Naruto was surprised by the number of injured shinobi, but then again, they had to fight against two ninja factions and demons. He should've been more surprised that they were still alive and not dead.

As he finished healing five ninja that were in critical condition word started spreading around the village. Everyone was coming to the market place to be healed by the angel, eventually; the Hokage himself arrived in the market place and approached the blond.

"I see you won." Naruto said while healing a ninja, his eyes closed and his left hand over the wound.

The aged Hokage smiled. "Yes, it's a pity the first couldn't join us." He said as Naruto tilted his head to the side. "He wanted us to free him, to let him return." The blond nodded, it was the best thing to let the spirit return to where it belongs rather then forcing it to stay on the mortal plane and within a fake body.

"What about the other ninja?" the blond asked as he opened his eyes and helped the ninja back to his feet, said ninja bowed before the blond and thanked him before leaving.

"We cut his hands off, he was saved before we could deliver the final blow." The old Hokage didn't seem pleased with that, not at all.

"You get some, you lose some." The blond said with a grin as the old man laughed. "I need to return to work, I will contact you when I'm done." The blond stated as the old man nodded.

"Very well then, I will be expecting you." He said as he turned around and started walking away. As he was making his way out of the market place he spotted the Uchiha. "Ah, Satsuki." He said as the girl looked at him and bowed. "I see you decided to drop the illusion." The Sandaime said with a smile as the girl nodded with a small blush. "Take care of yourself and please come tomorrow to my office to correct your id." He said as the girl nodded.

As the Hokage left the area she turned towards the blond who was healing another ninja now, she walked up to him. "You should head home and rest, I will be here till tomorrow most likely." The blond said before returning to his work.

Satsuki shook her head as she looked around; she spotted several med-nin's trying to help the injured and rushed towards them. The blond sighed as he helped the shinobi back to his feet; the man thanked him like all the rest before leaving. He looked around and was surprised when he saw the Uchiha helping the med-nin's. He smiled slightly at that before shaking his head and moving to the next injured shinobi.

* * *

Naruto twitched as he walked down the streets of Konoha the next day. People all around him were bowing, cheering at him. Now this wouldn't have been a problem if he was in another village, but he was in Konoha, where no one knew that he was Naruto Uzumaki, the Kyuubi Jinchuuriki. Surely their praises and cheers would die down the moment they learned that.

He looked up at the Hokage tower and then at the entrance, guards saluted the blond and let him pass. The angel stepped in and walked up the stairs towards the Hokage's office, it didn't take long to reach said office. The blond knocked several times on the door and entered as soon as he heard the Hokage answer.

Sarutobi watched as the blond entered the office and closed the door behind him, the angel walked in the middle of the office and placed his hands behind his back, he straightened his back and nodded at the old man.

"I assume you are here for a reason Naruto-kun." The aged Hokage said as the blond gave a curt nod.

"I am, I wish to forge and alliance with the village and make my stronghold here." The blond said making the old man's eyes widen.

"Alliance is understandable…but a stronghold here?" he asked with narrowed eyes as the blond shrugged. "Don't get me wrong Naruto, but won't that attract more demons? I need to protect my people, I can't do that if we are under constant pressure from Hell itself." He almost shouted as the blond raised his hand in a reassuring matter.

"I know what you mean old man…but this is the problem, there are numerous portals opening up around Konoha and within Fire country, most likely Kyuubi's followers are trying to free their master and at the same time strengthen their numbers." He explained as Sarutobi leaned in his chair and let the information sink in. "I have at least a hundred knights under my command, we will be fighting here for at least a year to close all portals, but we need a well defended camp, somewhere where we can rest, heal our wounds and … even recruit if needed."

Sarutobi narrowed his eyes at the blond. "That still doesn't sound good to me Naruto."

The blond sighed as he rubbed his head. "We can provide further protection from them…but think of it like this, what if we make camp in the woods, more then half of my men are injured or gone and they decide to attack in full force. I'm still a … rookie, for the lack of better words, we would all die and they would have free reign to terrorize Fire Country and then the rest of the world…not to mention Kyuubi would be free once more." The blond said trying to reason with the old man, he knew his limits and he knew that he would have great battles in the future; he needed a safe heaven to retreat to. While his men could simply leave their physical bodies and return to the main camp he couldn't do that.

The Hokage sighed knowing that what the blond said was true, but still. "You're saying you aren't powerful?" he questioned. Ever since the blond left he thought that by the time he would return he would be more powerful than himself, he hoped so at least considering what kind of burden he has.

The blond shook his head and sighed. "Power levels are different when dealing with demons, there is no rank and no way to compare with shinobi…but if I must, I would probably be at jounin now. But like I said, its not that easy to throw out a rank, I can take down a hundred skeletons in one blow, but the more they or the tougher the demons are the chances of killing them start to drop until the moment I need backup." He explained "Not even Tyrael can take on Hell himself…we aren't God's…" he reasoned as the Hokage sighed and looked out the window towards his village.

"What about the recruiting part?" he asked as he turned to face the blond once more.

"In case people want to fight them, in case they want to help…don't worry, my men will train them and help them reach their full potential…" he reasoned as the Hokage pulled out his pipe and lit the content, he inhaled once and puffed. A small smile appeared on his face as he calmed a bit. "We have bigger problems than missing-nin's, bandits or wars with other shinobi villages…you know it old man." The blond said.

He nodded with his eyes closed. "Yes you are right, the demon threat is more important…but will the other villages think the same?" he asked as the blond suddenly grew cold.

"Iwagakure surely knows this…" he said gravely as he looked at the old man "…I had to chose…save Konoha…or save Iwa…"

"What do you mean?" the aged Hokage stammered, while he didn't like Iwagakure the idea of them being razed off the face of the planet by demons was not what he ever expected, they were human beings after all.

"It's begun all over the elemental countries, Earth and Fire are only the beginning…" the blond said. "…I pray that Tyrael reached Earth in time to minimize the damage, but I will not know for at least a few months…or a year…" he said as the old man leaned forward, his eyes wide at the news.

"What exactly is happening here?" he asked as the blond scratched his neck with a frown on his face.

"War Hokage-sama…" he said simply "…the war has started, portals are opening everywhere as we speak, currently they are small and only smaller demons can travel through them…but in one years time they will be big enough to allow the largest of them to step out … and then…it will be too late to stop the massacre…just like in the past."

"Can't you close them?" the Hokage nearly shouted, fright evident in his voice. The blond was taken aback by the sudden outburst. For his part, Hiruzen was afraid of what will happen if they weren't closed and let to grow, he didn't know how many demons Hell had, he didn't know what it took to kill a demon off for good.

"It's not that simple." The blond said with a low voice. "We know the location of at least fifteen…but there are thirty-five still hidden…" the Hokage's eyes widened as he sat down in complete shock. "…me and Tyrael are the only ones that can close them…our only hope is to build a large army that can hold its ground against whatever Hell throws at them…when we close portals we are exposed to attacks, we need to concentrate on them…we are vulnerable at that moment."

For a long time in his life the Hokage didn't know what to say, he was scared for the future of his people and for his family. "They will return…" he heard the blond say and looked towards him, he was serious, he could tell. "…they will not like the idea that they were defeated and when they learn that I was here they will attack in full force." He said as the old man blinked.

"Was?" he asked as the blond nodded.

"I could leave…but it will change nothing, they will come and wipe out the village, their only goal is the complete annihilation of mankind…they don't care if they kill children, newborn…all they want is destruction." He said as the old man took his pipe out and placed it on the desk, he placed his hands over his head and stood there thinking, not knowing what to do.

"I've seen it before…" he heard the blond say after a minute of silence. "…I've seen the past…thousands of humans fighting against endless waves of demons…Tyrael doing his best to close the portals…betrayal…" he whispered the last part, Hiruzen had heard him, he looked up at the blond quizzically. "…Together we stand a chance old man…" he whispered as the Hokage looked at the pictures of his predecessors.

He thought about the village, about the people he swore to protect and then he thought of the promise he made the fourth Hokage. His eyes narrowed as his resolve strengthened and turned towards the blond. "Very well Naruto, you can have your stronghold here and an alliance."

The blond smiled at the old man, he raised his head so that the man can see his smile. "I have one last request…if we are to obey someone…we will obey you and you alone as you are the Hokage."

"And what if I chose another?" he asked as the blond continued to smile.

"I know that even the next one would be like you…a trustworthy person…we will listen to him…" his smile then faded as he looked towards the old man. "However…we will only kill demons, we will only protect the village from demons and protect ourselves if needed…we will not go on a campaign against other villages, that is not our goal."

"I would have it no other way my boy." The aged kage said with a smile as he took a sheet of paper out of the drawer. He started writing in haste as the blond stood in silence, waiting for the man to finish whatever he was writing.

After ten minutes the old man placed his pen down on the table and looked over the paper, he turned it around and motioned for the blond to come closer. The angel did as he was told and walked towards the desk, he looked down at the paper, it was a treaty. The blond slowly read it, he nodded liking what was written there and placed his hand over it.

"It shall be done, just as it is stated on the treaty." The blond stated as his hand glowed. A second later he took his hand away and the old man looked down at the paper, a strange symbol was present on the bottom of the paper. A man clad in armor, holding his sword downwards in front of him. He looked at the blond curiously; the angel smiled not answering the unasked question.

Hiruzen smiled shaking his head. "Then I welcome you and your men into our village Naruto…may the war end in our favor." He said standing up and extending his hand, the blond took it and shook it once, the pact was complete.

"Now we should discuss about your status…" the blond said with a critical eye.

* * *

The council chambers were abuzz, reports were coming in that the knights that came to help them during the invasion were drawing strange seals on the ground all over the village, the angel would stop any ninja that tried to force the knights to stop what they were doing. Reports stated that the angel had a document from the Hokage that allowed them free reign; on top of that it stated that they were now allies and that Hidden Leaf was a stronghold for the angel and his army.

The large double doors suddenly opened and the Hokage stepped in with the angel behind him. Everyone stared at the angel, some grateful that he had come to save them in their hour of need, some doubtful to his intentions after they learned what was happening in their village. The angel walked in the middle of the chamber and stopped under everyone's gaze, the old man walked to his seat and once seated he turned towards the council.

"This meeting is now in session." The Hokage said as everyone stood quiet, finally, one of the councilmen stood up.

"Lord Hokage, if I may, why are the knights writing seals all over the village?" he asked as the Hokage nodded.

"As you may have heard I signed a treaty with the angel before you and his army." He stated as everyone started to whisper with each other. "The reason for this is quite simple, we are at war now." Everyone turned towards the old man and looked at him curiously; sure they understood that they would go to war with Suna and Sound for what they had done and sure the help from a legendary being such as the angel before them would be great help, but still, they were curious as to why the Hokage gave the angel so much freedom.

"Don't take this lightly, this is not a war that we can win on our own…" the Hokage continued as everyone nodded knowing what he meant, or at least they believed they knew what he meant to say. They whispered amongst themselves.

"You are right Sarutobi…" Danzo spoke up as everyone turned towards him. "…our forces have been diminished even more after this attack; we could use all the help we can get in the war against Suna and Sound."

"Ah…but this is where you are wrong Danzo…" the aged Kage said as everyone looked at him strangely. "…his forces will not help us in fighting Suna and Sound…we are not at war with them." Everyone now looked at the old man like he had gone insane; with whom would they possibly go at war with if not with the ones that tried to raze them from the face of the Elemental Countries?

"With all due respect Hokage-sama…" Hiashi said standing up. "…but…if not with them, then with who?" he asked voicing everyone's thoughts, they all nodded at the clan heads question.

"With Hell itself Hiashi…" the aged man said in a deadly tone as everyone held their breath, many thoughts passed their minds, some even thought that being on the brink of death had made the Sandaime go senile. How would one fight against Hell? There was no way to reach it and even if there was, wasn't it suicidal? Wasn't it foolish?

"Esteemed councilmen, do not take my words lightly. Some of you may not know this as I decided to keep it a secret, but during the invasion, it wasn't only Suna and Sound killing our shinobi, destroying our village…but the forces of Hell as well." The Hokage's voice echoed in the council chamber. Everyone looked at him with wide eyes not believing what the man was saying, that is, until Hiashi spoke once more.

"So what Neji said…was true…" he breathed out, he didn't believe it when he heard it form his nephew, he didn't want to believe it even now. But the fact was that the Hokage just told them this little piece of information and an angel was standing in front of them. If someone had come to his house and told him there was an angel in the village, he would have never believed it unless he either saw it for himself or more and more came and told him. The angel before him and the Hokage's words were enough for him to believe that what his nephew said was true all along.

"Yes…we were attacked by demons, the angel before you came and defeated them, he helped us." Sarutobi said as another councilman spoke up.

"But still, why go to war with Hell? It's … suicidal!" Inoichi shouted as everyone nodded in agreement, it was then that the angel spoke up.

"They want you all dead." He said, everyone turned towards him. "The demons care not if you are allied with me or not…their goal is to wipe out mankind from the face of the planet."

"But…they are demons!" the blond man shouted once more as his friend muttered a 'troublesome' and tried to calm the man down. "How do you expect to kill demons?" he asked.

"The same way Kumo's shinobi did…" he replied as everyone's eyes widened once more. "…yes, the rumor is true, yes, I was there…"

"Then…all those people…"

"They died, then turned into mindless zombies or skeletons for Hell's army…the same can happen here, with your families, with your loved ones, do you not wish to save them?" he asked as everyone looked at each other and then back at the blond.

"I want to protect my daughters." Hiashi said quietly.

"As do I." Inoichi said, soon everyone started agreeing until Danzo stood up.

"But how?" he asked "How do you expect us to kill them?"

"Like you would kill a normal human being…stab it, gut it, rip its head off…" his tone was harsh, for the civilian councilmen it was horrifying to think that shinobi would kill someone like that, that they would rip someone's head off. "I will need every shinobi, young or old, but capable to fight to be ready." He said as the Hokage stood up.

"Our shinobi will receive special training from the knights, they will be instructed on the easiest way to kill the demons and how to fight against them." He said as the angel nodded.

"I'm afraid that I will have to decline with that." Danzo said shaking his head "The last Uchiha cannot partake in these fights; we need her to re-establish the clan."

"_To breed…"_ the blond scowled under his hood as Hiashi started talking. "Then I will not let my daughters fight as well, nor will I let Neji fight!" he shouted and soon everyone started shouting that they would not let their daughters, sons or relatives fight a hopeless battle.

"Enough!" the blond shouted. "The battles will not be hopeless if your shinobi follow my and your Hokage's instructions…everyone will fight, even the clan heads!" he shouted as they all looked at him. "There are no exceptions, I could care less if the Uchiha clan is dying down…even one man or woman can make a difference right now!"

"I still see no point in sending such a valuable asset to her death!" Danzo shouted "So what if there will be demons attacking us, that is why you are here!" he rasped out as some of the councilmen suddenly started agreeing with the aged war hawk.

"Do you really think I would have asked for help if I could take them down myself?" he asked in a harsh tone as the temperature in the room suddenly dropped. "We have an invasion on our hands…you want me to make a connection with something? You want me to explain it like I was talking to a little child? Then very well…imagine the whole planet banding up against you!" he shouted, everyone's eyes widened at the proclamation.

"In this case it's a bit different, all of Hell has banded against mankind! For all I know Iwa could be dead by now!" a few gasps were heard in the room, Iwa was still a strong village, even after the third shinobi war it maintained its power. "They have no fear; they will come in masses after all of us, at the same time. Our only hope for survival is to band against them!" he declared as the Hokage stood up.

"And even so, because we are at war I will take full command of our forces and if he says everyone will fight then everyone will do so." At the look on everyone's face Sarutobi continued. "Consider this information, there will be no voting regarding this matter, it has been decided when the treaty was signed." He declared as he waved his hand signaling that the meeting was over. No matter how much they tried to protest now they knew that they couldn't change anything anymore.

* * *

It was at the break of dawn the next day that Naruto's knights had finished their task. The ninja's of Konoha were all starting at the sky, gazing at the angel above them. Said angel scanned the village, looking at each seal before closing his eyes and bringing his hands together in front of his chest. He started chanting, his entire body was slowly encompassed by a bright light. His eyes snapped open; he moved his hands to the side with his palms upwards towards the sky, his wings extended as he arched his body backwards.

A burst of light shot from him, expanding over the village; moments later portals started opening all over the village and numerous figures stepped out of them. Sarutobi looked at the angel from the Towers roof. A portal opened behind him and a man clad in armor stepped out of it, his helmet was in his hands, a cigar present in his mouth.

"_About time he summoned us."_ He stated in a eerie voice as the old Kage turned towards him, his ghostly face showed a man that died in his early forties. A scar present over his left eye.

In the village everyone stared in awe as numerous knights stepped out of the portals. They were all clad in plate armor or leather armor. Some had bows and arrows, others had close ranged weapons such as swords, maces, axes and many other. Knights on horses stepped out of the portals as well, they all scanned the area around them before leaving toward the center of the village.

Kakashi stared in shock at the two knights in the distance. "Father…mother…" he whispered to himself as he saw his deceased parents stepping out of two portals, his father was wearing plate armor, the helmet was under his arm. His mother however was wearing leather armor and a cowl over her head. A bow was present in her hands. Sakumo looked around and smiled sadly at the village before placing his helmet over his head and walking away, his wife trailing behind him, they never saw Kakashi who was staring at them in complete shock.

"_So good to be back!" _a knight shouted as he extended his hands in the air, he looked up towards the angel which stopped channeling and smiled. _"So I am under your command huh? Sensei would be proud of you…" _he whispered as he started walking towards the center of the village.


End file.
